                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

TAKING CERTAIN STREETS INTO SECONDARY STATE HIGHWAY SYSTEM (§ 33.2-335)

A. For the purposes of this section:
			&#8220;County&#8221; means a county in which the secondary state highway
system is constructed and maintained by the Department and that has adopted a
local ordinance for control of the development of subdivision streets to the
necessary standards for acceptance into the secondary state highway system.
			&#8220;Qualifying rural addition cost&#8221; means that portion of the
estimated engineering and construction cost to improve the street to the minimum
standards for acceptance remaining after reducing the total estimated cost by
any prorated amount deemed the responsibility of others based on speculative
interests.
			&#8220;Rural addition funds&#8221; means those funds reserved from the
county&#8217;s annual allocation of secondary state highway system construction
funds, as defined in &#xA7; 33.2-324, for the purpose of this section. If such
funds are not used by such county for such purpose during the fiscal year they
are so allocated, the funds may be held for such purpose for the four succeeding
fiscal years. A maximum of five percent of the annual secondary state system
highway construction allocation may be reserved by the local governing body for
rural additions.
			&#8220;Speculative interest&#8221; means that the original developer or a
successor developer retains ownership in any lot abutting such street for
development or speculative purposes. In instances where it is determined that
speculative interest is retained by the original developer, developers, or
successor developers and the governing body of the county deems that extenuating
circumstances exist, the governing body of the county shall require a pro rata
participation by such original developer, developers, or successor developers as
prescribed in subsection D as a condition of the county&#8217;s recommendation
pursuant to this section.
			&#8220;Street&#8221; means a street or highway shown on a plat that has been
recorded or otherwise opened to public use and used by motor vehicles for at
least 20 years and that, for any reason, has not been taken into the secondary
state highway system and serves at least three families per mile.

B. Whenever the governing body of a county recommends in writing to the
Department that any street in the county be taken into and become a part of the
secondary state highway system in such county, the Department thereupon, within
the limit of available funds and the mileage available in such county for the
inclusion of highways and streets in the secondary state highway system, shall
take such street into the secondary state highway system for maintenance,
improvement, construction, and reconstruction if such street, at the time of
such recommendation, (i) has a minimum dedicated width of 40 feet or (ii) in the
event of extenuating circumstances as determined by the Commissioner of
Highways, has a minimum dedicated width of 30 feet. In either case, such streets
must have easements appurtenant thereto that conform to the policy of the Board
with respect to drainage. After the streets are taken into the secondary state
highway system, the Department shall maintain the same in the manner provided by
law. However, no such street shall be taken into and become a part of the
secondary state highway system unless and until any and all required permits
have been obtained and any outstanding fees, charges, or other financial
obligations of whatever nature have been satisfied or provision has been made,
whether by the posting of a bond or otherwise, for their satisfaction.

C. Such street shall only be taken into the secondary state highway system if
the governing body of the county has identified and made available the funds
required to improve the street to the required minimum standards. The county may
consider the following options to fund the required improvements for streets
accepted under this section:

   1. The governing body of the county may use a portion of the county&#8217;s
   annual secondary state highway system construction allocation designated as
   rural addition funds to fund the qualifying rural addition costs for
   qualifying streets if the county agrees to contribute from county revenue or
   the special assessment of the landowners on the street in question one-half of
   the qualifying rural addition cost to bring the streets up to the necessary
   minimum standards for acceptance. No such special assessment of landowners on
   such streets shall be made unless the governing body of the county receives
   written declarations from the owners of 75 percent or more of the platted
   parcels of land abutting upon such streets stating their acquiescence in such
   assessments. The basis for such special assessments, at the option of the
   local governing body, shall be either (i) the proportion the value of each
   abutting parcel bears to the total value of all abutting parcels on such
   street as determined by the current evaluation of the property for real estate
   tax purposes, (ii) the proportion the abutting road front footage of each
   parcel abutting the street bears to the total abutting road front footage of
   all parcels abutting on the street, or (iii) an equal amount for each parcel
   abutting on such street. No such special assessment on any parcel shall exceed
   one-third of the current valuation of such property for real estate tax
   purposes. Special assessments under this section shall be conducted in the
   manner provided in Article 2 (&#xA7; 15.2-2404 et seq.) of Chapter 24 of Title
   15.2, mutatis mutandis, for assessments for local improvements.

   2. The governing body of any county may use a portion of its annual secondary
   state highway system construction allocation designated as rural addition
   funds to fund the qualifying rural addition cost for qualifying streets within
   the limitation of funds and the mileage limitation of the Board&#8217;s policy
   on rural additions.

   3. The governing body of any county may use revenues derived from the sale of
   bonds to finance the construction of rural additions to the secondary state
   highway system of such county. In addition, from the funds allocated by the
   Commonwealth for the construction of secondary state highway improvements,
   such local governing body may use funds allocated within the Board policy for
   the construction of rural additions to pay principal and interest on bonds
   associated with rural additions in such county, provided the revenue derived
   from the sale of such bonds is not used as the county matching contribution
   under &#xA7; 33.2-357. The provisions of this section shall not constitute a
   debt or obligation of the Board or the Commonwealth.

   4. The governing body of the county may expend general county revenue for the
   purposes of this section.

   5. The governing body of the county may permit one or more of the landowners
   on the street in question to pay to the county a sum equal to one-half of the
   qualifying rural addition cost to bring the street up to the necessary minimum
   standards for acceptance into the secondary state highway system, which funds
   the county shall then utilize for such purpose. Thereafter, upon collection of
   the special assessment of landowners on such street, the county shall use such
   special assessment funds to reimburse, without interest, the one or more
   landowners for those funds that they previously advanced to the county to
   bring the street up to the necessary minimum standards for acceptance.

   6. The governing body of the county may utilize the allocations made to the
   county in accordance with &#xA7; 33.2-357.

D. In instances where it is determined that speculative interest exists, the
basis for the pro rata percentage required of such developer, developers, or
successor developers shall be the proportion that the value of the abutting
parcels owned or partly owned by the developer, developers, or successor
developers bears to the total value of all abutting property as determined by
the current valuation of the property for real estate purposes. The pro rata
percentage shall be applied to the Department&#8217;s total estimated cost to
construct such street to the necessary minimum standards for acceptance to
determine the amount of costs to be borne by the developer, developers, or
successor developers. Property so valuated shall not be assessed in the special
assessment for the determination of the individual pro rata share attributable
to other properties. Further, when such pro rata participation is accepted by
the governing body of the county from such original developer, developers, or
successor developers, such amount shall be deducted from the Department&#8217;s
total estimated cost, and the remainder of such estimated cost, the qualifying
rural addition cost, shall then be the basis of determining the assessment under
the special assessment provision or determining the amount to be provided by the
county when funded from general county revenue under the definition of
speculative interest in subsection A or determining the amount to be funded as a
rural addition under the definition of qualifying rural addition cost in
subsection A.

E. Acceptance of any street into the secondary state highway system for
maintenance, improvement, construction, and reconstruction shall not impose any
obligation on the Board to acquire any additional right-of-way or easements
should they be necessary by virtue of faulty construction or design.

HISTORY: Code 1950; 1968, c. 601; 1970, c. 322, § 33.1-72.1; 1972, c. 393;
1976, c. 391; 1977, cc. 214, 578; 1978, c. 487; 1979, c. 321; 1980, c. 96; 1981,
c. 232; 1982, c. 167; 1983, cc. 171, 455; 1984, c. 146; 1987, cc. 156, 207;
1989, c. 274; 1991, c. 250; 1993, c. 71; 1995, c. 416; 1997, c. 740; 1998, cc.
330, 338, 340; 2001, c. 95; 2004, c. 677; 2006, c. 827; 2009, c. 635; 2014, c.
805; 2015, c. 179.