1. Approve and authorize the Chair of the Board to sign the agreements with Harlan Revocable Trust and Christine Harlan for $32,800 for acquisition of an electrical utility easement on County Road 28H; and
    
2. Authorize the Director of Integrated Waste Management to approve payments, accept the easement, and record the deed once the signed deed has been received.

A temporary power line utility easement exists on these properties along County Road 29.  The power line on the easement conveys power from the County's methane power plant located at the Yolo County Central Landfill to the main power grid on County Road 102. This temporary easement has expired and an extension of its term is required to continue the delivery of power to the main grid. Pattison and Associates, Inc. a property acquisition consultant, provided appraisals and an accompanying independent review appraisal to determine the value of the property.  County staff have negotiated with both property owners and have reached agreement to amend the original agreement for an additional 6 years, with an expiration of December 31, 2026.

Background
On March 20, 1989, Yolo Gas Recovery Corporation (the prior owner of the methane facility) entered into an agreement with Bernell Harlan and John Henry Beckman for a Power line Utility Easement.  In 2017 the Division of Integrated Waste Management purchased the Yolo County Central Landfill Methane Power Plant and the rights to the utility poles from NEO Yolo, LLC to continue transmitting electricity generated at the Yolo County Central Landfill. In 2012, Christine Harlan purchased the Beckman property, and the easement went with the property.  The original power line easement expired 31 years after the agreements were fully executed.

In accordance with federal requirements for property easement acquisition, just compensation was established by the County based on the approved appraisal and an offer was presented to the owners on June 6, 2020.  Since that time, staff have worked with the property owners and offered an amount that was substantially higher than the appraised value in order to reach an acceptable agreement as shown in the attached Amendments to the Agreement. The limited term of this amended easement will allow the County to continue to use the land to transmit power from the County's methane plant while staff negotiates a longer term or permanent easement on this corridor.