News and Events in Fairbanks
Arctic Trails Chapter 71
Please see below for the meeting minutes:
- July 2021
- June 2021–No Board Meeting (Potluck / Officer Installation)
- May 2021
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- January 2021
- November 2020
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- August 2020
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- June 2020–No Board Meeting
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- April 2020–No Board Meeting
- March 2020
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- October 2019
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- July 2019
See below for Chapter 71 news and blog items:
Chapter 71 2021/22 Election Results
- President: George Stefan
- President-Elect: Richard Possenti
- Treasurer: Terry Griffin
- Secretary: Open
- Godspeed Properties, LLC v. Reeves
- April 21, 2021 Order Amending Judgment and Permanent Injunction
- April 21, 2021 Amended Judgment and Permanent Injunction (Amendment)
- No part of the easement crossing MS 1724 had been extinguished by prescription.
- The preliminary injunction entered in this case on September 10, 2018 is vacated.
- Godspeed and its related entities and Reeves and his related entities may make certain uses of the easement crossing MS 1724.
- Charlie Parr, SR/WA, 1991
- Sharon McLeod-Everette, SR/WA, 1993
- Chris Guinn, SR/WA, MAI, 1992 and 1994
- Paul Costello, SR/WA, 1995
- Bill Newman, 1996
See below for archived Chapter 71 blogs:
Who owns the right to store natural gas in a depleted reservoir? Did you know that “pore space” is “mineral”? For an interesting discussion of that question and the nature of surface and subsurface rights, see the Alaska Supreme Court’s May 6, 2016 decision in City of Kenai v. Cook Inlet Natural Gas Storage, State of Alaska Department of Natural Resources, and Cook Inlet Region Inc. (No. 7101): 373 P.3d 473
Depending on the dates involved and other circumstances, the mere filing of a homestead application can segregate the land applied for from the public domain. Such segregation could prevent the imposition of a section line easement when the land is surveyed. That was the finding of the Alaska Supreme Court on October 16, 2015 in Luker v. Sykes, Opinion No. 7059. Open question: Could this principle also influence how the various Public Land Order (PLO) rights of way affect the land applied for? (This case involves land south of Chena Hot Springs Road near Grange Hall Road.-cp)
In 1961, BLM issued a patent for a Small Tract in the Anchorage area. The patent contained the following language: “This patent is subject to a right-of-way not exceeding 50 feet in width, for roadway and public utilities purposes, to be located along the north boundary of said land.” In an interesting March 2013 opinion, the Alaska Supreme Court interpreted that language as an express common law dedication which required some form of acceptance, either by a public body or by actual use. Because the Superior Court had not made specific findings of acceptance, the case was remanded for determination whether there had been acceptance. (One of the things that makes this interesting is that the 50’ strip is within East 136th Avenue!) The case, McCarrey v. Kaylor, (301 P.3d 559) is worth a read. – CLP
For an interesting read about the “hostility” element required to establish an easement by prescription, see Dault v. Shaw, Alaska Supreme Court Opinion No. 6847 dated November 29, 2013. This opinion cites (and quotes very extensively from) many prior opinions of the Court on prescriptive easements. There is a vigorous dissent, and the Superior Court decision being appealed is attached to the Opinion. You do not normally get this much information in one Opinion. (322 P.3d 84)
For a comprehensive treatise on Highway Rights of Way in Alaska, see the monograph with that title authored by John Bennett, PLS, SR/WA. This paper, first published in 1993, was updated and revised in January 2013. It covers the history and uses of highway rights of way, citing statutes, regulations, court and IBLA decisions among other sources. Bennett addresses RS 2477, section line easements, PLO’s, and other means by which rights of way are created, defined, and used. This is an essential reference for all involved in any aspect of the right of way profession.