                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

APPEAL TO CIRCUIT COURT (§ 33.2-910)

Any one or more of the landowners whose property abuts the highway, landing, or
railroad crossing proposed to be abandoned, or if only a section of a highway,
landing, or railroad crossing is proposed to be abandoned, whose property abuts
such section of the highway, landing, or railroad crossing, and who petitioned
for a public hearing under § 33.2-909 or the Commissioner of Highways, or if a
public landing is proposed to be abandoned, the Director of the Department of
Wildlife Resources, may within 30 days from the adoption of an ordinance or
resolution by the governing body of the county appeal from the ordinance or
resolution to the circuit court of the county in which the section of highway,
the public landing, or the railroad crossing sought to be abandoned under §
33.2-909 is located. Where the governing body of the county fails to adopt an
ordinance or resolution pursuant to § 33.2-909, such person or persons named in
this section shall within 30 days from such failure have a right of appeal to
the appropriate circuit court. Such appeal shall be filed by petition in the
clerk&#8217;s office of such court, setting out the ordinance or resolution
appealed from or the cause appealed from where no ordinance or resolution was
adopted and the grounds of such appeal. Upon the filing of such petition, the
clerk of the circuit court shall docket the appeal, giving it a preferred
status, and if the appeal is by any of the landowners who filed a petition with
the governing body of the county for a public hearing, notice of such appeal
shall be served upon each member of the governing body of the county pursuant to
§ 8.01-300 and either the Commissioner of Highways or the Director of the
Department of Wildlife Resources, as applicable, and if the appeal is by either
the Commissioner of Highways or the Director of the Department of Wildlife
Resources, notice of such appeal shall be served upon the governing body of the
county and the landowners who filed petition with the governing body of the
county for a public hearing. No such appeal shall be tried by the court within
10 days after notice is given, as provided in this section unless such notice is
waived. The circuit court shall decide the appeal based upon the record and upon
such other evidence as may be presented by the parties. Upon the hearing of the
appeal, the court shall ascertain and by its order determine whether adequate
justification exists for the decision of the governing body of the county that
public necessity exists for the continuance of the section of highway, landing,
or the railroad crossing as a public highway, public landing, or public railroad
crossing or whether the welfare of the public will be served best by abandoning
the section of the highway, landing, or the railroad crossing as a public
highway, public landing, or public railroad crossing and shall enter its order
accordingly.
		Upon any such appeal, if it appears to the court that by the abandonment of
such section of highway, landing, or railroad crossing as a public highway,
public landing, or public railroad crossing any party to such appeal would be
deprived of access to a public highway, the court may cause the railroad company
and the governing body of the county, or either, to be made parties to the
proceedings, if not already parties, and may enter such orders as seem just and
proper for keeping open such section of highway, landing, or railroad crossing
for the benefit of such party or parties.

HISTORY: Code 1950, § 33-76.9; 1950, p. 732; 1970, c. 322, § 33.1-152; 1978,
c. 187; 1981, c. 323; 1990, c. 190; 2014, c. 805; 2020, c. 958.