EDITORIAL: Improving an intersection without taking private land

Published 12:15 pm Wednesday, March 1, 2023

The Oregon Department of Transportation’s goal of revising the intersection of 10th Street and Pocahontas Road/Hughes Lane to make it safer for drivers, pedestrians and bicyclists is a worthwhile one.

Among the objectives is to make it easier for trucks to turn onto Highway 30 at the intersection, which is not set at right angles.

The state agency needs to accomplish its goals without forcing any property owners to sell some of their land.

And an ODOT official has said that’s possible.

A chief concern about the project, which ODOT plans to start in 2024, involves Jim Ingram’s alfalfa field at the northeast corner of that intersection in north Baker City.

(ODOT is the lead agency because that intersection is part of a state highway — U.S. 30.)

The Baker City Council has discussed Ingram’s property — with Ingram in attendance in some cases — at multiple meetings over the past year.

One proposed design would involve ODOT exercising the right of eminent domain (also known as condemnation) to acquire some of Ingram’s property. The state would have to pay Ingram for the land; however, as Ingram told city councilors in November 2022, that would be a one-time payment that wouldn’t account for the long-term loss of value. That’s an important issue with farm land, which can produce income every year for decades.

During that November meeting, Ken Patterson of ODOT told councilors that the state has options that wouldn’t require taking any of Ingrams’ land.

“That isn’t set in stone,” Patterson said.

What should be set in stone is a commitment from the state to accomplish this important task without taking arable land out of production and depriving Ingram of its long-term value.