Eminent domain for roundabouts in Malta

“The Town Board last month authorized construction of the community’s 14th and 15th roundabouts for the Round Lake Road corridor, just west of the Northway’s Exit 11. The town would take slices of land from 13 residential and commercial properties to turn the intersections at Ruhle Road South and Chango Drive into roundabouts, according to Supervisor Paul Sausville. The largest of the properties is a quarter-acre, while others are much smaller. The town would acquire seven properties through fee acquisitions and six through temporary easements, Sausville said. He says roundabouts are the safest way to decrease congestion on the busy road, which stretches from the Ballston border to the village of Round Lake.

“We’re taking very small pieces of property,” Sausville said this week. “People see the value of having 21st Century intersections.”

Some who live in the area, however, say the roundabouts will not make Round Lake Road safer for elementary school students and seniors that walk there. The Eitzmann family, who live on the north side of the Round Lake Road near Chango Drive, will contribute .02 acres of his property.”

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Stewart, Tyswan. Times Union 18 February 2014.