Municipal Authority in Airport Development and Land Acquisition
Hello, I’m Oklahoma City attorney Dillan Savage of Wirth Law Office, and I practice primarily in the Oklahoma City, Oklahoma area. Today, we are going to be talking about the powers and rights of municipalities to obtain land, real estate, and other such property for the purpose of maintaining and operating airports.
Municipalities actually have the power, as I said before, to obtain land, buildings, real estate, and other such property so they can open or operate airports and the rights-of-way therein. This can occur either within the bounds of the municipality or outside of its boundaries.
They also have the ability to use what is known as eminent domain, which, broadly speaking, allows them to take certain property for the purpose of serving the municipality and the public’s best interest. In this case, it would be for the operation and use of an airport.
Legal Framework for Airport Acquisition
We are specifically looking at Title 3, Section 61, entitled Municipalities May Acquire and Operate Airports – Eminent Domain – Bonds. The exact wording of this statute—I’m not going to read the entire thing—but it simply states:
Every municipal corporation within this state, Oklahoma, shall have the right and power to acquire, own, operate, improve, and maintain, within or without the corporate limits of such municipal corporation, real estate, buildings, improvements, and facilities for aviation airports and rights-of-way.
For such purposes, every municipal corporation shall have the power to exercise the right of eminent domain within or without the corporate limits of such municipal corporation.
So, if you are working within the municipality and the municipality itself is discussing what they might do in order to operate or obtain an airport, this is something you’ll want to know about. If you happen to be interested in your municipality obtaining or creating an airport, this is also important information to be aware of.
If you found this information to be useful or believe it could help someone else, please go to theoklahomacityattorney.com. My name is Dillan Savage, and I’m the Oklahoma City business law attorney with Wirth Law Office. Thank you for watching.
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If you have questions about municipal powers or need assistance regarding airport operations, please call us at 405-888-5400 for a low-cost consultation.
