Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1944 )

659 OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS AUSTIN - Eionorablolured 0. Jaye County AttC$nOy, Coamnohe County Comdnoho,Texaa'~ Dear Sir: Puestlng the oplulon or thta de$artment'on therein reads, In part, as r0u0w6: in we r0r manyyears.,. Court the Compliaaloners' tollowing order;~ hat a p&b116 mad of the feet wide be opened aa ing at a point on the Corn- ordhlp road jwt East or the af th0 ho- or N. a. m0k8, aeterly direotion following the meandering8 of the said South Leon through the land of C. D. Corby to the wed line or the P. W. LevlsaJrland'ithenoe In a ~ortheaeterlgdfreotion through the P. W. Lerlaay land to thq Iiorthwestoorner of the land or l&e. Gandy. Theme in an East- erly direotion between the kwleay land and the Oandy .landto the Northeast oorner of the Oandg'l&nd; thence in a northerly dlreo- 660 tlon tbrou&h the P. W. &evlsay lexidto an intermotion with the Gomanoheend Cloldthwaiteroad at the Junction or the said Comanche and Coldthwzilte road with - the Co&&he and the Weuburg~road. Thie mad i8 to be opened and fiinoedwithout expenee.to. the oounty. Thie.road la opened aa desoribad on the agreunmnt or all partie oonoerned that th4- gater on l mQI@ mr hroadttioughthelande ood of Q. D.Goaby, 3. D. firrer end P. 1. Leri- #ay.be opened end remain open on the 8tlpulatlonthat parties Interestedin the we or thl8 neighborhood road r*nit?h atook gap&or 8elf oloming gtw ae the waw. may require.* . . *&e ,&boreorder doerrtit reveal the'looation OS the.tuo roads with rererenoeto dirsotlon. I am attaohing a plat hereto givlug In rough outltne - tha reletlYe direOtiOn.Oreaoh road. The quse$ion I il+re that your ?ffloe .parsupon'is thllra I: "mOXl the Comdesioners* court 0r th18 oounty aoted’upon a petition auly preeentsdto it ed'os- kablg8hed~the road draignated aa the 40 ipo>~mad, and.in the same order daorwd that anotha? road then in use referred to In the ordir ae the *nefghborhbod*road running through, thq Zand of . wits named in the order be melntainedwith atook gap@ or self oloslng gate8 - did thla order establish the,.#04-oalled; %efghborhooda road as,a public road under'tha laws of this State." btiele 6908, Vornon*s Annotated Civil Statutes, provides: "813 pub110 road8 and highways no? dfaoon- tinued thet'have heretoforepeon lald out and emtabllahedagreeably to law are hereby declared to bo publio road&” Referring to Article 6702, suma, It Is etated in Texas Jurisprudenoe,Vol.~Zl..pago 684: *Thi &tuti relating to county road8 raiere to eil public roads and highways not disoontlntied 663. Eonorable FEed 0. Jaye.,page S and established agreeably to law. This has been &n&trued to mean a road establishedby ,,tha oonmiaatonera~ oourt. The dxpreaelon *publio zoad* $n other atetutea is generally oonatrue~~to inelude nonstatutoryas wall as -rrta*utvpy t&a
but *pub110aounty road* d@fir’8“+ road rhioh haa~b~anmeatabllahad by 8tathtotiy proomdln@. (5W ‘StephemolcY. St,.Louis SouthwesternEiallway Oo"tp"p, ,164Sr W. Ugb. Nrror Reruaad.) . I ~orallJ.apaaking, andar rtatutorydireotlon comdaaionera~ &oertr,olatiaityroada ar of tha rfrat, aaaond or third ~laaa. (Arti- 010 6704, ~erbon9a Annotated Cltil Statutes) Neighborhoodroads air8di8ttiagari8ha& from other roads %n that thy are established under ~petihl aadura.~ (&a Artlole 69ll, Vornon'a Annotated Civil &atuta# p” ~.. ; w^ In th8 base oi Jantason1. Erwin. County Judge. et al, 91 S. W. (Zd) il%O, It ia stated: *It :a well aattlad by aany deolafonaor oar appellate oourta that a.atriot oomplianciawith tha.statqt&ryproYfaionacentainadin OhaBtor 8, title 116, Revlead Civil Statute8 (artlola6708, at seq.) i8 nsoeaaary to oonrer jurisdictionon the ~oPrmlaaio~era~oourt to lay out and eatabllab~ the pcibltoroad8 in thfa state. EaverbekkauY. Halo, 109 Tes,.1066 804 8. W. 11681 Hlllb. TayloLor-60unty. (Teri Oiv. 4pp.J eV4 ,S.E. 8d&, ana ,authoritlea thorn alted., *Phe isOt that th8 portion Of tha road manning through the land~aorthor the Ilmnoaoa traot &d bean in uao a8 a neighborhood ‘road for the oonven- ienoe 0r taiti8bna0r that lmmadiatecomity ror over 40 years, a8 found by the trial court, did not establish its statue aa a statutorypablio road Of the third olaaa to be auparplsedby ths oounty oomalaaionerain aoaordanuerfth tha pro- vtaiona or artiole 6113, Rev'.Civ. Statutes.*I** There ie nothing in the order of the oo.zutiasionera* oourt, as quoted above, that would indioatethat tha road designatedas 662 liouorable Fred~ 0. Jay@, page 4 %oighborhuada road was established aa a neighborhood road under the provisions oi Alrtiolo Wll, Vornon*a &mot&ted Ciril Statutes, OF that auoh r~oad was deaignatad and established by the comaia- atoners* wurt and olmaaifiad as oi the rlret, asooud or third olaaa. gtated. another way, thsre’ is nothing In the foregoing or,der of tU ooaw&aaionera* aaurt indicatingthat tha “neighborhoodW’ rod wati~aetabllah&d by the oommlaslonera oo& by statutory pro- oaedluga or o.thaa~iae. In view or the roregoing authoritlea,It is our opinion I that tha %aighbOrhood” road la Rat a pub110 road established by the oomufaslonora* oourt undertha provisionsot Chapter 8, Title ll6,. Verum*a Annotated Cirll Statqtaa. Cauarally apeakin~, it is well aatabliehad~ that to the aouuty authorities there la raaanad the right to lay out., eatabliah.aul mintaln publ.io roads,. notwlthataudiag there may’be publio roads naither laid out or maintaina& by tlm oounty, ai?, for inatarioe, by dadioatlon~ Pr ‘preaariptlvo use:. It is. stated in the baas oi Rotfmfinv. Bgnnnt,~ 101 8. W. ted) 600: ** *. * It la the settled law of tide state that a publis highway may be oreated by a loon& UBS by $h8 publlo~oarried on in eooh a uanaer~and peraiete~ in ror auoh a length of bims as ta give a .right by p??aaorlpt~on dr Liplitation. ‘Porter Y. Johuaun (Ter. Cit; App.) 151 a. II. 6991 81 Tu. Jur. b4g1+9,~~550c The authoritlsa reoogunize the diffioulty in anforo- lag the law of iltaltation as it ralatea to P publio road. See MeSkal v. DariS (Tex. Clv, ‘ARp.) 39 8. W9. (gdj ‘llC6; 6~%r. Law Rev. SOS. Rut natwithstanding the ditrloulty or,ita application, the pub110 oan aoqulre a preacrlptive right to a publfo road. * * *” Whether the ~noighborhood” road hereinvolved is a publio road oreated by a loug use by the publlo.oarvied on in suoh a manner and persisted in ior such a length of tL.ka -98 to gire a right by praaorlption, dedioation OP limitation praaenta a faot question on whloh this dopartmmt aahuot erprew any opinion. Yours vary truly-