Opinion ID: 2629969
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Statutory Dedication Under Idaho Code Section 50-1309

Text: Armands argue the district judge erred in granting summary judgment against them because the judge erroneously interpreted I.C. § 50-1309. Opportunity asserts that the decision is correct because the BBT plat was not signed by all persons who owned lots at the time it was recorded and, therefore, is void. Idaho Code Section 50-1309 states in part: The owner or owners of the land included in said plat shall make a certificate containing the correct legal description of the land, with the statement as to their intentions to include the same in the plat, and make a dedication of all public streets and rights-of-way shown on said plat, which certificate shall be acknowledged before an officer duly authorized to take acknowledgments and shall be indorsed on the plat.... The remaining two sections of this statute refer to the dedication or transfer of private roads to the public and the jurisdiction of highway districts over private roads in subdivisions. While the language quoted above is quite broad in its requirements, the provision as a whole appears to relate to dedicating streets and rights-of-way for public use. In order to have a valid dedication, owners must acknowledge their desire to dedicate streets and rights-of-way to the public. It is logical to require property owners to do so, so there is no question of their intent to be bound by the provisions of the plat giving private property over to the public. The plat in this case does not contain any public streets or rights-of-way and thus, it is difficult to see how this statute pertains here. Moreover, none of the lot owners within the plat at the time it was recorded have ever expressed any disagreement with the plat and in fact, fully supported the plat of BBT as it was recorded in 1984. In his affidavit in opposition to summary judgment, Mark Schafhausen stated: The proposed plat included common areas which I relied upon in agreeing to the purchase price that I paid. While Opportunity would like to have the BBT plat declared void so that the BBTII plat would take its place, there is no support for that in § 50-1309. Thus, the unilateral actions of subsequent property owners re-platting part of the property into BBTII has no effect on the validity of the BBT plat and those areas designated as common areas. Therefore, Armands have a valid interest in the areas that are expressly designated as common areas on the BBT plat.