Judge gives state a nod in Silveria ranch eminent domain case
“The state Department of Transportation has offered owner Lorraine Silveira about $1.8 million in a condemnation proceeding, including $282,000 for 32 acres of pastureland next to Highway 101 at the Redwood Landfill at the north end of Novato.
No way, says Silveira, who wants about $6 million for the prime acreage, loss of facilities including water pipelines, ranch roads, gates and a cattle crossing, and the reduction in value of a quarry operation as well as land envisioned for “highest use” as a winery.
But a tentative ruling Thursday by Superior Court Judge Paul Haakenson indicates the Silveira valuation is inflated, concluding the rancher “fails to show that $5,895,000, rather than $1,769,900, is the ‘probable amount of compensation that will be awarded.'”
Haakenson, questioning validity of a consultant’s “master plan” report saying the 1,400-acre ranch can accommodate clustered housing, a winery, vineyard, creamery and dairy, said that claiming the highway project would clip $3 million from a seemingly “inflated” $29.4 million overall value of the property was “speculative and unsupported by competent evidence.”
Trotter said called Caltrans “a tad arrogant” for “thinking they know what the highest and best use of our property is.”
Haakenson said the case posed a tough call for a judge without a background in real estate, appraisal and related valuation matters. “It’s a complicated issue and I’m in a difficult position of making a decision,” he noted.”
Nels, Johnson. Marin Independent Journal 26 January 2013.