G en. 135] 135

Your re quest for a

n opinion concerned an earlier proposed version 1 of this ordina

nce. The County adopted a somewhat different ve rs ion shortly before your re quest was made

.

Z ONI NG AND P LA NNI NG C O UNTI ES

– M UNI CI PALI TI ES

– E FFE CT OF M UN I CI PAL A NN E X AT I ON ON O PE N S PACE E ASEMENTS G RANTED T O C OUN T Y B EFORE A NN E X AT I ON

J une 21, 2004

Jon athan A

. H

od gson , Esquir e A tto rn e y fo r th e T

o w n o f C e n tre v ill e

O n behal f of t he Tow n of C ent r evi l l e ( “Tow n”) , y ou as ked for ouropi ni on aboutt he ef fec tof t he Tow n’ s annexa t i on of l and on cer t ai n open s pace eas ement s pr evi ous l ygr ant ed w i t h r es pectt o t hat lan d . T h e o p e n sp a c e e a se m e n ts in q u e stio n w e r e g r a n te d in acc or dance w i t h t he Q ueen A nne’ s C ount y( “C ount y ”) zoni ng l aw w hi l e t he prope r t y w as out s i de T ow n boundar i es . A new pr ovi s i on o f th e C o u n tyz o n in g law a u th o riz e s th e C o u n tyC o m m iss io n e rs, in t hei rdi s cr et i on, t o r el eas e ea s ement s under cer t ai n condi t i ons i f t he pr oper t yi s annexe d bya muni ci p ali ty

. I n an opi ni on t hat 1 acc om pani ed y ourr eques t , y ou co n cl uded t hatt he open s pace e a se m e n ts w e re sim p lya n e n f o rc e m e n t m e c h a n is m f

o r th e C o u n ty zoni ng r egul at i ons , and thatt heybeca m e nul l and voi d upon annexa t i on of t he l and byt he T ow n, w i t houtanyact i on byt he C ou ntyC om m i ssi on ers . W e r e s pe c t fu l l ydi s a gr e e . I n o urop i ni on , t he l a nd use re stric tio n s c re a ted b y th e o p e n sp a c e e a se m e n ts re m a in e n f o rc e a b le f o llo w in g a n n e x a tio n . T h e C o u n ty o rd in a n c e p ro v id e s a p e rm iss ib le p ro c e d u re f

o r r e le a s in g th o s e re s tr ic tio n s o n th e u s e o f th e la n d

.1 3 6 [8 9 O p . A tt ’y

The land of

the ea sement grantor is sometimes re fe rre d to as the 2 “ser vient tenement”or “serv i en t estate.” See Miller v. Kirkpatrick, 377 Md. 335, 349-50, 833 A.2d 536 (2 0 0 3 ). When the ea sement is for the benef it of the owner

of other land, that land is ref erred to as the “ dominant tenement”or “dominant e state.” Id

. An ea sement “in gross” is one bene fitting a particula r per son or the 3 public g enerally , rathe r than a particula r trac t of land. Colonial

Pipeline Co. v. State Department of Assessments &Taxation , 371 Md. 16, 29 n.17, 806 A.2d 648 (2002). I

O p en S p a ce E a sem en ts A n eas ement i s a nonpos s es or yi nt er es ti n t he r eal pr oper t yof a n o th e r, c re a te d e ith e r b ye x p re s s g ra n t o r b yim p lic a tio n . Mi l l erv. K i r kpatr i ck , 3 7 7 M d . 3 3 5 , 3 4 9 -5 0 , 8 3 3 A .2 d 5 3 6 (2 0 0 3 ). T o c o m p ly w i th A nn o tat ed C o d e o f M ary land , R ea l Pro p ertyA rt icl e (“ R P ”), §3- 101, a dee d of ea s ement m us tbe r ecor ded i n t he l and r ecor ds , t hus gi vi ng not i ce of

t he r es t r i ct i on on t he l and. I n gener al , an ea s ement las ts in p e rp e tu ity , o r u n til th e g ra n tee ’s r ig h ts a re e x tin g u ish e d in a c c o rd a n c e w ith th e te rm s o f th e in s tr u m e n t. See R P §4- 105 ( a gr ant o f e ase m en t l asts in p erp etuity , “[ u ]nless a co n tr aryinten ti o n appears b yex p ress term s o r i s n ec essa ri lyim p li ed ”).
M ary l and l aw provides exp res sl yfor con ser vati on easem ents

. See R P §2- 118. T he s t atut e pr ovi des t hatanyr es t r i ct i on pr ohi bi t i ng or l i m i t i ng t he u se of w a ter or l and areas for cert ai n p urposes, w het herdr aft ed i n t he form of an e as ement or ot her w i s e, cr eat es an e n f o rc e a b le “ in c o rp o re a l p ro p e rty in ter e st,” if th e re stric ti o n is pr oper l yexec ut ed. R P §2- 118( a)

. I f t he r es t r i ct i on i s not gr ant ed for t he bene fi tof anydom inan t t r actof l and, i ti s enfor cea bl e as an 2 eas em en ti n gr os s . R P §2- 118( c)

. I f t he dee d orot heri ns t rum ent 3 cr eat i ng an ea s ement t o pr es erve agr i cul tur al , hi s t or i c, or envi r onm ent al qual i t i es fai l s t o s peci fya gr ant ee, t he ea s ement pas s es t o t he M ar y l and A gr i cul tur al L and Pr es er vat i on Foundat i on, th e M a ry la n d H is to r ic a l T ru s t, o rth e M a r yla n d E n v ir o n m e n ta l T ru st. R P § 2 -1 1 8 (e ); see al

so M ar yl and E nvi r onm entalTrus tv. G aynor , 3 7 0 M d

. 8 9 , 8 0 3 A

. 2 d 5 1 2 (20 0 2 ).G en. 135] 137

T h e r ec ent l y

en ac t edv er s i o no f th e C o unty ’s l an d d evelopment law 4 is a v a i l a b l e o n t h e C ounty ’s website a t http://www.qac.org

/depts/planzone/refs/Title18tx t

. p d f. Simi lar provisions appea red in prior

versions of the County

zoning law. S tate p o licyf

a c ili tate s th e c re a tio n o f c o n se rv a tio n e a se m e n ts and s i m i l arr es t r i ct i ons on devel opm entt hatar e form al l yi m pos ed on la n d to p re s e rv e its o p e n s p a c e o r o th e r c h a r a c te ri s tic s . See A nnot at ed C ode of M ar y l and, N atur al R es our ces A r t i cl e, §3- 201 et s eq. ( M ar y l and Env ir o n m ent al T rus tm ayacc eptdonat i ons of c o n s e r v a t i o n e a s e m e n t s ) ; An n o t a t e d Co d e o f M a r y l a n d , Ar t i c l e 8 3 B, §5

- 6 0 7 ( a ) ( M a r y l a n d Hi s t o r i c a l Tru s tma ya c c e p ti n t e r e s t s i n r eal p ro p e rty ); A n n o tate d C o d e o f M a ry lan d , A rticle 6 6 B , § 8 .0 4 (h isto ric d istri ctcomm i s s i on orhi s t ori c p rese rva ti o n co m m issi o n m ayac q u ir e eas ement s t o ens ur e pr ot ect i on of hi s t or i cal l y , ar cheol ogi cal l y , or ar chi t ectur al l ys i gni fi cant pr oper t y ) ; A nnot at ed C ode of M ar y l and, A gr i cul tur e A r t i cl e, §2 -51 0 ( M ar y l and A gr i cul tur al L and Pr es er vat i on F o u n d at i on m aypur chas e ea s ement s t o pr ot ect ag ri cu ltu ral l an d ).
II O p en S p a ce E a sem en ts i n Q u ee n A n n e’s C o u n ty A . E as em ent

s G r anted to C ompl

y w i th C ount

y Zon ing L aw U ndert he Q ueen A nne’ s C o u n tyzoni ng or di nance and s ubdi vi s i on r egul at i ons , a devel oper m ay be r equi r ed, as a condi t i on o f d e v e lo p m e n t ap p ro v a l, t o re stric t ce rta in p o rtio n s o f th e lan d to o p e n s p a c e u s e . S e e , e .g ., Q ueen A nne’ s C ount yC ode, §§18- 1- 97 thr ough 18 -1-9 9 (no n co n ti g u o u s d ev elop m en t) ; §§ 1 8 -1-1 0 0 thr ough 18- 1- 107 ( t r ans fer abl e devel opm ent r i ght s )

. For t hi s purpo se, t he 4 ow neri s t o s ign and ac know l edge a n i ns t rum entt hatw i l l be re c o rd e d in th e C o u n ty la n d re c o rd s . Id

. , §§18- 1- 99, 18- 1- 104, 18- 1- 106. T he C ount yC ode pr es cr i bes s peci fi c pr ovi s i ons t o be i ncl uded in th e in s tr u m e n t. Id

. , §18- 1- 205. Y ou pr ovi ded w i t h y ourr eques tan exa m pl e of a deed of easem en t appar ent l ycr eat ed as par tof t he appr oval of a c l us t er su b d iv isio n u n d e r sim ilar p ro v isio n s o f a p rio r v e rsio n o f th e C o u n ty C od e. T he d eed st at es t hat the C ou ntyzon i ng ordi nan ce requir es a por t i on of t he gr ant or s ’ l and t o be re s t r i ct ed as open s pace , t hatt he1 3 8 [8 9 O p . A tt ’y

Simi lar provisions appe ar in pre liminary rec itals of the dee d. 5 The de ed grants the County Co mm i s sioners or their

designee, or 6 the County

Planning Commi ssion, a right to enter the land designated a s op e n sp a c e fo r purp os e s o f i ns pe c tio n a nd e nf orc e me nt o f t

hee a se me nt. Article V

. d e e d i s d e s i g n e d t o s a t i s f y t h o s e r e q u i r e me n t s , a n d t h a t i t i s not i nt ended t o confe rs ubs t ant i ve r i ght s orr esp o n sibi l i t i es on t he ow ner s of l ot s w i t hi n t he cl us t ers ubdi vi s i on. A r t i cl e I I I , ¶2. T he 5 deed a l s o s t at es t hat i tpr es er ves t o t he gr ant or s t he r i ghtt o m odi fy t he r es t r i ct i ons des cr i bed i n t he dee d “i n t h e eventt he Zoni ng O r di nance per m i t s addi t i onal s ubdi vi s i on of t he ‘O pen Space ’ ” and i f t he gra nt or s obt ai n fi nal s ubdi vi s i on appr oval fort he m o d if ic a tio n s . I

d.
T he dee d des i gnat es t he C o u n t yC om m i s s i oner s of Q ueen A nne’ s C ount yas t he “gr ant ee. ” Th e d ee d s t at es t hati tcr eat es an eas ement t hat “sh al l run w i t h and bi nd al l l and w i t h[i n] t he s ubdi vi s i on” and thati ti s bi ndi ng on t he l andow n ergr ant or s , and t hei rs ucce s s or s and as s i gns . A r t i cl e I I , ¶2

. Itpr ohi bi t s t he us e of t hos e por t i ons of t he s ubdi vi s i on des i gnat ed as “open s pace ” exc ept fo r ce rtain li m it ed rec rea ti o n al or a g ri cu ltu ral use s an d ac ce sso ry r es i dent i al us es , as per m i t t ed byt he C o u n ty zoni ng or di nance . A r t i cl e I V , ¶1( a)

- ( c)

. T he d ee d p r ovi des t hat , i n t he eve ntof a confl i ctbet w ee n pr ovi s i ons of t he dee d and anyl aw orr egul at i on, the m o re restri cti v e p rov isi o n p rev ail s. A rt icl e IV , ¶1 (d).
T he dee d defi nes “open s pace ” as undevel oped l and r equi r ed byt he C ount yzoni n g o r di nance t o be r es t r i ct ed forr es our ce pr ot ect i on, r ecr eat i onal us es , or cer t ai n ot herus es . A r t i cl e I , ¶5. T he “zoni ng or di nance ” i s defi ned as t he Q ueen A nne’ s C ount yzoni ng o rdin an ce in ef

fe ct o n th e d a te o f th e d ee d , as w ell as f u ture amendm ent s of t hatl aw . A r t i cl e I , ¶7. T h e d ee d p rov ides fo r en fo rce m en t b y th e Q u ee n A n n e’s C o u n tyC o m m issi o n ers o r t h eir de sign ee , o r by th e Q u ee n A n n e’s C ount yPl ann ing C om m i s s i on. A r t i cl e I I , ¶3. I tpr ecl udes any 6 amendm ent o r c hange unl es s t he i ns t rum entacknow l edgi ng t he change is exec ut ed byt he C ount yC om m i s s i oner s and r ecor ded a m o n g th e la n d re c o rd s o f Q u e e n A n n e ’s C o u n ty. A rt ic le II , ¶ 4

.G en. 135] 139
B . R eleas e of

E as em ent

s under Cou nt

y Zon ing L aw A r e c e n t l ye n a c t e d p r o v i s i o n o f t h e Co u n t y z o n i n g l a w a l l o ws fort he el i m i nat i on of open s pace r es t r i ct i ons fol l ow i ng annexa t i on of land b ya m un i ci pali t y . Itprovides:

A nyopen s pace r es t r i ct i ons es t abl i s hed byt he i ns t rum ents hal l be nul l and voi d and of no for ce a nd eff

ectfol l ow i ng: ( i ) a n n e x a t i o n o f

t h e o p e n s p a c e b y a m u n i ci pal corpor at i on w i t hi n Q ueen A nne’ s C ount y ; and ( i i ) fi nal appr oval byt he muni ci pal corpor at i on of a s ubdi vi s i on or sit e pl an t hat w ou l d p erm it u ses other than t ho se us es aut hor i zed i n t he i ns trum ent ; and (iii) the e x e c u tio n o f a re lea se in re c o rd a b le fo rm b y th e C o u n ty C om m i s s i oner s rel eas i ng t he l and fr om th e f o r c e a n d e f

f e c t o f th e in stru m e n t. T h e e x e c u tio n o f

su c h re lea se sh a ll b e in t he s ol e and e xcl u si ve di s cr et i on of t he C ou ntyC om m i ssi on ers . Q ueen A nne’ s C ount yC ode, §18- 1- 205( d) ( 8)

. T he or di nance t hus al l ow s fora gene r al r el eas e of us e r es t r i ct i ons i n an o pen s pace eas ement gr ant ed undert he C ount yzoni ng l aw , w hen t he open s pace l and i s annexe d by a muni ci pal i t yand t he muni ci pal i t yhas gr ant ed fi nal appr oval of a s ubdi vi s i on o r site pl an perm i t t i ng us es not al l ow ed byt he o p en s pace r es t r i ct i ons . W het hera r el eas e i s gi ven i s l e f tt o th e d i s c r e t i o n o f

t h e C o u n t y C o m m i s s i o n e r s o n a c a s e - b ycase basi s. Y ou as k w het hert he Co mmi s s i o n e r s e f f e c t i vel yl ack di s cr et i on t o decl i ne t o r el eas e an ope n s pace eas ement on l and annexed byt he T ow n. Y ou s ugges tt hat , l i ke t he C ount yzoni ng l aw i t s el f, an eas ement gr ant ed t o obt ai n appr oval undert hatl aw becomes nul l and voi d upon m uni ci pal annexa t i on of t he l and.1 4 0 [8 9 O p . A tt ’y

A m un ic ipality

that ann e xes l and

pr e vio us ly

su bje c t to c ounty 7 zon ing mus t e ith e r wait fi ve ye ars be fo rere c la ssi fy ingtheland

to p e rm it a su b s ta nti a lly d if f e r e nt u s e , o r

o b tain th e a s s e nt o f

th e c o unty

to the re c la ssi fi c atio n. Anno tate d Co de of Ma ry land , Ar tic le 23 A, §9 (c )( 1) ; see Mayor and Council of Rock vi l l e v. Rynlyns, Inc. , 372 Md. 514, 548-61, 814 A.2d 469 (2002). Of c ourse, in some instance s, i t may not be clea

r whe ther the 8 zoning re gulations or an ea sement is more restric tive. I f there is a conflict between the two, it will be up the property owner in the first instance, a

nd perha ps ultim ately

a cour t, to resolve the issue. Ann e xati o n ma

y in d ire c tly a f

f e c t th e e n f

o r c e a b il it y o f such a 9 covena nt if th e n ew zoning reg ime results in near by development a

nd a court deems it inequitable to enforc e the restrictions in the cove nant. See (continued...) III A n a ly sis A . E f f ect of A nnexati on A nnexat i on of l and bya muni ci pal i t ypot ent i al l yal t er s zoni ng r es t r i ct i ons aff

ect i ng t hatl and. W hen a m uni ci pal i t yw i t h pl anni ng a n d z o n in g a u th o rity (su c h a s C e n tre v ill e ) an n e x e s lan d , it g e n e ra lly obt ai ns excl us i ve pl anni ng and zoni ng aut hor i t yi n t he ar ea a nnexed, su b jec t to c e rta in lim itatio n s. A n n o tate d C o d e o f M a ry lan d , A rticle 7 2 3 A , § 1 9 (s ).
I n cont r as tt o i t s eff

ect on zoni ng aut hor i t y , t he anne xat i on of l and s ubj ectt o a r ecor ded eas ement gener al l y has no di r ecteff ecton t he ea s eme n t. I ti s uni ver s al l yacc ept ed t hatl and us e r es t r i ct i ons i m pos ed byan ea s ement and t hos e i m pos ed byzoni ng r egul at i ons o p e ra te in d e p e n d e n tly o f o n e a n o th e r. See E

. H

. Z iegler, e t a l. , 5 R athkopf’s Law of

Zoni ng and P l anni ng§8 2:2 (4t h ed. 20 04 ). T hu s,
“ [ w ]h e n a z o n in g re stric tio n a n d a p riv a te c o v e n a n t ar e in c o n f lict, t h e mor e r e s t r i c t i v e o f t h e t wo p r e v a i l s . ” I d. ; see al

so M ar t i n v. W ei nb erg , 205 M d. 519, 527- 28, 109 A

. 2d 576 ( 1954) ( cont r actual r es t r i ct i ons on l and us e ar e nei t herabr ogat ed norenl ar ged byzoni ng r es t r i ct i ons )

. A ccor di ngl y , w hi l e anne xat i on m ay s ubj ect l and t o a

8 n e w z o n in g a n d su b d iv isio n re g u lato ry re g im e , itd o e s n o t d ire c tly affect r est ri ct i on s i m po sed by pri vate coven ants such as easem ents

. 9G en. 135] 141

(...continued) 9 E.H. Z ieg ler, su

pra , §82:4. As n o ted above , several provisions of the sample de ed of 10 e a se me nt s tatethat th e re stric tio ns imp os e d b y thee a se me nt a resu bje c t to futureamendments of theCounty zoning ordinanc e or to futureaction by County land use a

uthorities. See Article I I I , ¶2 (grantors may reduc e area of open spa ce if County zoning ordinanc e permits additional subdivision of that area) ; Article IV, §1(c) (grantors ma y authorize additional uses of restric ted area if

County zoning ordinanc e per

mi ts such uses for open sp a c e ); Ar

tic le IV, §1 (d) (u se s o f o pe n s pa c e pe rm itt e d b y e a se me nt m

us t also be in complianc e with County zoning ordinanc e). In our vi ew , these a

uthorizations t o modify

the re strictions in the ease ment can be g iven eff ect in a ccordance with the ir terms, only so long (continued...) See Sor r ent i no v. C unni ngham , 111 I nd. 212, 39 N

. E

. 2d 473 ( 1942) ( annexa t i on of ar ea by C i t y of I ndi anapol i s and adopt i on of zoni ng or dina nce di d notr el i eve l and of c ovenant s r es t r i ct i ng s al e of in to x ic a tin g b e v e ra g e s a n d o th e r a c tiv itie s ).
T he fa ctt hatan open s pace eas ement m ayprev en t o rr es t r i ct cer t ai n us es of l and i n m uch t he same w ay as a zoni ng or di nance or ot h er local l and us e r egul at i on m i ghtdo does notconver tt he dee d r es t r ict i ons i nt o gover nm ent al r egul at i ons . N ordoes t he fa ctt hat d e e d r e s tr i c t i o n s mi g h t b e r e q u i r e d b ya c o u n t yt o a c h i e v e t h e s a me goal s as a zoni ng orot herl and u se o rdi nance conver tt he dee d restr i ct i ons i nt o gover nm ent al r egul at i ons . D eed r es t r i ct i ons and re g u lato ry l a n d u se re stric tio n s o n th e sa m e p ro p e rtyo p e ra te in d e p e n d e n tly. See Mi kol as ko v. Schove e , 124 M d. A pp. 66, 87- 88, 7 2 0 A

. 2 d 1 2 1 4 (1 9 9 8 ), af f ’ d on othergr ounds , 3 5 6 M d

. 9 3 , 737 A

. 2 d 5 7 8 (19 9 9 ).
In th e situ a tio n p re se n ted b y y o u r i n q u iry , lan d o n c e situ a ted in t he C ou nty and subjectt o the C ou nty ’s l and use regulat i on s w as al so m ade s ubj ect , att he C ount y ’ s i ns t ance , t o a r ecor ded open s pace eas ement runni ng i n favorof and e nfor cea bl e byt he C ount y . W hen t he Tow n annexe d t hi s pr oper t y , t he l and us e r egul at or yaut hor i t yof the C ount yt er m i nat ed, butt he ea s ement i n t he C ount y ’ s favor cont i nued. T hus , w hi l e t he C ount ycan no l ongerenfor ce i t s zoni ng o r d i n a n c e o rs u b d i v i s i o n r e g u l a t i o n s w i t h r e s p e c tt o t h e p r o p e r t y, C ou ntyauthori t i es can cont i nue t o enfor ce s peci fi c us e r es t r i ct i ons se t f o rth in th e d e e d o f

e a se m e n t. T h e T o w n h a s n o p o w e r to

101 4 2 [8 9 O p . A tt ’y

(...continued) 10 as theland

c ov e re d b y

thee a se me nt c ontin

ue s to be su

bje c t to t heland us e re gulator y a uth ority of theCounty

Commis sio ne rs . O nc e theland is ann e xed and lan d usere gulator

y a uth ority pa sse s to theTo wn , th e se provisions ha

ve no continuing eff

ect. They cannot g ive the County ’s land use re gulations or its zoning or subdivision officials authority within the l i m i t s o f a mun i c i p a l i ty th ati t s e l f

p o s s e s s e s p l ann i n gan d

z o n i n g a ut h o ri t y. At thesame tim e , ho we ve r, the seprov isi on s d o n ot i nv a lid ateoth e r p art s o f th e e a s e ment t

h at c anb e g iv e ne f

f e c t i nth e a

b s e n c e o f c o ntinuing C o unty l an d

u s e r e gu l at o r

y a uth o ri ty. aut hor i ze de vel opm entt hat w o ul d cont r avene r es t r i ct i ons i n t he e a se m e n t, an d th e e a se m e n t ca n n o t au th o riz e d e v e lo p m e n t th a t is forbi dden byt he Tow n’ s zoni ng ordinanc e ors ubdi vi s i on regul at i on s. B . E f f ect of C ount y O r dinance Sect i on 18- 1- 205( d) ( 8) of t he Q ueen A nne’ s C ount yC ode aut hor i zes t he C ount yC o m m issi oner s t o r el eas e an ope n s pace eas ement w hen l and has been a nnexed b y a m u ni ci pal i t yand t hat m uni ci pal i t y , in the exe r ci s e of i t s ow n pl anni ng and zoni ng a u th o rity , ap p ro v e s a u se n o t p e rm itt e d b y th e e a se m e n t. T h e C o u n ty C om m issi o n er s , as t he gr ant ee of t he dee d of ea s ement and t he aut hor i t ygi ven enfor cementpow erbyi t s t er m s , coul d r el eas e t he pr oper t yfr om t he open s pace r es t r i ct i ons . W hi l e t he ordi nance r equi r es t hatt he r el ease be “ i n r ecor dabl e form , ” t he r el eas e i s not eff ect i ve unt i l i ti s actual l yr ecor ded i n t he C ount yl and r ecor ds

. For exampl e, t he s ampl e deed t haty ou pr ovi ded s t at es t hata cha nge or a m e n d m e n t ( o f

th e d e e d o f

e a s e m e n t) s h a ll n o t b e e f f e c tiv e u n til ... a w ritten d o c u m e n t ac k n o w led g in g su c h c h a n g e o r a m e n d m e n t sh a ll b e e x e c u ted b yth e C o u n tyC o m m iss io n e rs o f Q u e e n A n n e ’s C o u n ty a n d re c o rd e d a m o n g th e L a n d R e c o rd s o f Q u e e n A n n e ’s C o u n ty.” A rt ic le II , § 4

.

IV C oncl usi on O pen s pace eas ement s gr ant ed i n compl i ance w i t h t he Q ueen A n n e ’s C o u n tyz o n in g o rd in a n c e a re e n f o rc e a b le b yC o u n ty a u t h o r i t i e s , e v e n a f

t e ra n n e x a t i o n o f

t h e l a n d i n v o l v e d b y aG en. 135] 143

m uni ci pal corpor at i on havi ng pl anni ng and zoni ng aut hor it y . T he C ou n ty C om m i s s i oner s , as t he gr ant ee a nd t he author i t ygi ven enfo rcem ent pow er byt he ter m s of t he d eed o f easem ent, can rel ease th e p ro p e rt yf

ro m re s tr ic tio n s in th e e a s e m e n t.

J. Jo sep h C u rran , Jr. A t t or ney G ener al Ju d ith A . A rm o ld A s s is t antA t t or n e

y Gen e r al
R o b e rt N . M c D o n a ld C hi ef C ouns el O pi ni ons and A dvi ce