Since the preliminary design of the Red River Valley Water Supply Project (RRVWSP) is now complete, right-of-way acquisition will soon begin on segments of the project. “All affected landowners will be compensated for the use of their land. It’s important to remember that since this is buried infrastructure, farmers will be able to continue using the land prior to and after construction is completed,” says Kip Kovar, Deputy Program Manager for RRVWSP Engineering.
Landowners along a 28-mile portion of the project’s pipeline that will be constructed will receive packets of information from Garrison Diversion Conservancy District (Garrison Diversion), a sponsoring agency of the State of North Dakota authorized project. “We already have existing option agreements with many of the landowners we’ll be reaching out to or have already contacted. In some cases, this will be the first time we’re reaching out to discuss the option to purchase a permanent easement for a 150-foot wide corridor across a property,” says Kovar.
Each landowner packet will contain the following materials:
- Letter identifying the tract of land
- RRVWSP map with project information
- Garrison Diversion Conservancy District overview
- Agreement to be signed with a return envelope
- Crop damage payment policy
Garrison Diversion will manage the easement process with the help of land agents from KLJ who will be making further contact with landowners to discuss easement requests and compensation after the initial information packets go out.
“We want to provide as much information to landowners as possible to help them understand the process and be assured that we will return their land to its original condition after construction is complete,” says Kovar.