11 Professional Land Surveyors of Oregon | www.plso.org Featured Article Who’s Responsible Here?: Multnomah County Rightof-Way Jurisdiction By A. Lee Untangling a network of public jurisdictions can be a confusing exercise. Not all adjacent or overlapping agencies communicate with each other or have clear records. In the arena of public right-of-way (ROW), there is a mix ranging from clearly defined agreements to unrecorded practices passed on over time that generally result in a largely usable road network, control of impacts, and management of resources. While a complete overview of ROW is too broad of a subject to address here, a closer look at Multnomah County’s (MultCo’s) ROW may be enlightening. Relevance to Surveyors Most low-impact surveying activities in MultCo ROW can be performed without obtaining a MultCo ROW Permit. However, there are considerations to keep in mind on what is an “impact” and some notable exceptions. In addition, as one of the earliest project activities, surveying may be able to provide early, valuable awareness of MultCo presence in order to incorporate subsequent design and construction requirements. In the MultCo road network, an “impact” is any activity that inhibits public use of ROW areas or alters a public asset. These kinds of activities include, but are not limited to, closures to any vehicle lane, shoulder, bike lane, or sidewalk; any trenching or excavation; or damage to pavement, ROW vegetation, or stormwater drainage. If MultCo ROW staff reviews the impacts and determines a ROW Permit is necessary, submittal requirements may include a work plan, traffic control plan, Temporary Pedestrian Access Plan (TPAR), proof of insurance coverage naming MultCo as additional insured, and fee. At this time, if the survey work is identified as being in support of public utilities, then MultCo does not collect any fees per ORS 758.010. An exception to the “impact” approach for MultCo ROW Permitting is for MultCo’s Willamette River Bridges (WRBs), described below. For any work on, under, or adjacent to these structures and embankment approaches as defined in MultCo Road Rules Section 25.000, the proposed activities must be reviewed by MultCo staff and may require a ROW Permit. The MultCo Bridge Operations staff monitor the WRBs at all times in preparation for regular and unscheduled bridge openings, and must be informed of any official presence on the structures. Certain bridges have very specific traffic control requirements due to the relatively narrow clearances set according to the design standards when they were originally built. Another aspect of layered ROW jurisdiction is the varied land use and development codes between MultCo and cities within. Properties and development may be under city jurisdiction by code or intergovernmental agreement, but the ROW jurisdiction may still be with MultCo. There are instances where a land use code will have requirements affecting the ROW, such as driveway access or frontage improvements. These are often communicated between agencies, but sometimes changes in staff or the increasing age of agreements that no longer match the parties’ needs have led to confusion. In addition, the specific clearance and maintenance needs of the WRBs have surprised downtown developers, their consultants, and contractors. Not all parts of various city agencies know to check for a MultCo presence, and most developments are focused on a city’s land use without realizing another entity may be involved. If your project may be affected by the presence of MultCo jurisdiction, please consider notifying your project manager or client. Multnomah County’s Roads and Bridges Without going back too far, the responsibility for the higher road classifications within MultCo was mainly shared between the state and county until 1984, when the city of Portland began to take on formal jurisdiction of all incorporated roads within city limits. It wasn’t a clean break, so there are some road corridors that pass in and out of incorporated Portland, with unincorporated segments remaining under MultCo jurisdiction [Figure 1]. There was a similar transfer to Agreements and boundaries continue to shift over time, adding challenges to the work of surveying. continues
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