Opinion ID: 2595592
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: Did Basin Negotiate in Good Faith

Text: [¶ 48] The landowners contend that Basin did not negotiate in good faith as required by the statute. There is little, if any, dispute that Basin negotiated in good faith with respect to the amount of money to be paid for the easements and accesses. Of course, what payments will be made to the landowners involved in these appeals is not yet determined. Basin is on the record as having agreed that it will pay all landowners who settled early-on the same per-acre damages as will ultimately be paid to the landowners involved in these appeals, should it be greater than that negotiated prior to these proceedings. Basin negotiated with all landowners over a period in excess of a year (in some instances longer), and those negotiations continued up until the day of trial. Indeed, several additional landowners settled just before trial. [¶ 49] The sticking points in the final negotiation process were the location of the transmission line, as well as the term for the easements and accesses, i.e., that they were to be perpetual or for as long as they were needed for the transmission line. The record establishes that just prior to trial, Basin agreed to settle for easements with a duration of 99 years, rather than perpetuity. [¶ 50] We have held above that Basin had great discretion with respect to the location of the transmission line. In addition, we note that Basin attempted to accommodate owner concerns about location, especially early on in the negotiation process. As Basin settled with more and more landowners, it became ever more difficult to accommodate the concerns of the remaining landowners without then making alterations to other settled portions of the route. The record contains seven voluminous exhibits that detail the contacts Basin had with each of the landowners involved in these appeals. We note that those exhibits amply demonstrate Basin's good faith efforts to negotiate with all landowners, to the extent that was practicable. We have carefully examined those exhibits, as well as the transcripts as a whole, and are fully satisfied that Basin did negotiate with all landowners in good faith. See generally, Michael A. DiSabatino, Annotation, Sufficiency of Condemnor's Negotiations Required as Preliminary to Taking in Eminent Domain, 21 A.L.R.4th 765 (1983 and Supp.2004); and 6 Nichols on Eminent Domain, § 24-14 (3rd ed.2002). The district court was correct in concluding that Basin negotiated in good faith, as required by the governing statutes. [¶ 51] We will further discuss the issue of the perpetual term for the easements in the final section of this opinion.