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Besancon memo to BCC June 7, 2019 Page 12 approximately 454 feet long, after the right-of-way needed for 66t' Avenue is deducted. The County's initial appraisal of the Parcel was performed by Armfield & Wagner and they assigned a value of $42,100 for the 0.87 acres of right-of-way property needed and $220,000 for the entire property. The appraiser retained by the Besancons valued the property at $473,973 for a partial take and $600,000 for the entire parcel. After further discussion, the parties reached an agreement where the County would convey the 0.97 acre Gardiner parcel to Mr. Besancon and the sum of $200,000 for the needed 0.87 acre right-of-way Parcel. The conditions of the sale are as follows: 1. The Besancons may create two equal size parcels of property by combining the remainder parcel and the Gardiner parcel. 2. Each parcel will have the existing impact fees credited to the land. 3. The north driveway will remain in place and the south driveway may be located as far south as permitted by County code, for a total of two driveways, one for each parcel. These conditions were approved by Community Development and Public Works Due to the close proximity of the new right-of-way line to the front of the house, (less than 20 feet) most eminent domain appraisers would deem the house substantially damaged or a total loss. In arriving at the settlement amount, staff reasoned that its own appraiser deemed the value of the whole parcel to be $220,000 and that the resale value of the Gardiner property would be compromised by its narrowness, making it most valuable to adjacent property owners like the Besancons. The Besancons sought appraisal, engineering and land planning fees in the amount of $19,552.50 which was negotiated downward to $18,000 and attorney's fees pursuant to the eminent domain statute of 33% of the benefit gained for the client ($200,000 - 42,100 = $157,900 x 0.33 = $52,107), making the total cost to purchase $270,107. In the interest of settlement, Mr. Simon agreed to waive any right to attorney's fees associated with the non -monetary benefits obtained as a result of acquiring the Gardiner property and the conditions of the sale listed above. By purchasing the property in advance of filing a lawsuit, staff is attempting to save on expert witness fees that would have been incurred by both parties. Pursuant to state statutes, the County is responsible for paying reasonable expert witness fees incurred by both parties. As noted in the past, expert witness fees for both parties often exceed $100,000 by the time the suit is filed and mediation is held. The County has achieved significant savings in this case by not having to hire our trial witnesses (appraiser, engineer and land planner), outside counsel and compromises on attorney's fees and expert costs.