                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

AUTHORITY TO LEASE OR CONVEY AIRSPACE (§ 33.2-226)

The Commissioner of Highways may lease or sell and convey the airspace
superjacent or subjacent to any highway in the Commonwealth that is within his
jurisdiction and in which the Commonwealth owns fee simple title after
satisfying itself that use of the airspace will not impair the full use and
safety of the highway or otherwise interfere with the free flow of traffic
thereon and it cannot be reasonably foreseen as needed in the future for highway
and other transit uses and purposes. The Commissioner of Highways may provide in
such leases and conveyances of airspace for columns of support, in fee or
otherwise, ingress, egress, and utilities.
		No lease or conveyance shall be entered into by the Commissioner of Highways
unless the locality, by action of its governing body by majority recorded vote,
approves the projected use of the airspace in question and has taken such steps
as it deems proper to regulate the type and use of the improvements to be
erected in such airspace by appropriate zoning or other method of land use
control.
		All leases and conveyances shall contain those terms deemed necessary by the
Commissioner of Highways to protect the interests of the Commonwealth and the
public. The Commissioner of Highways may utilize any competitive procurement
process authorized by law, including (i) competitive sealed bidding, (ii)
competitive negotiation, (iii) best value procurements as defined in §
2.2-4301, and (iv) public-private partnerships pursuant to the Public-Private
Transportation Act of 1995 (§ 33.2-1800 et seq.), as determined by the
Commissioner of Highways, in his sole discretion, to be appropriate and the
method most likely to achieve the identified goals of the proposed lease or sale
and conveyance of airspace. The Commissioner of Highways may reject any bid or
offer that he believes is not in the best interest of the Commonwealth.
		Compensation paid for such leases and conveyances shall be credited to the
Priority Transportation Fund established pursuant to § 33.2-1527.

HISTORY: 1979, c. 431, § 33.1-183.1; 2013, cc. 585, 646; 2014, c. 805; 2017, c.
278; 2020, cc. 1230, 1275.