40-313. POWERS AND DUTIES — BEAUTIFICATION AND INFORMATION. The board shall:

(1) Furnish, erect and maintain, whenever necessary for public safety and convenience, suitable signs, markers, signals and other devices to control, guide and warn pedestrians and vehicular traffic entering or traveling upon the state highway system.

(2) Forbid, restrict or limit the erection of unauthorized signs, billboards or structures on the right-of-way of any state highway, and remove therefrom and destroy any unauthorized signs existing on them.

(3) Acquire, maintain and improve areas adjacent to highways on the state highway system for the restoration, preservation, and enhancement of scenic beauty, for use as informational sites, and for rest and recreation of the traveling public. The areas shall be parallel to and contiguous with the highway and shall not exceed a width of one thousand (1,000) feet from the adjacent right-of-way line. The board may acquire these areas in fee, easement, or other interest as may be determined by the board to be reasonably necessary to accomplish the purposes of chapter 15, title 40, Idaho Code. Such acquisition is declared to be for a highway use, and may be by gift, purchase, exchange or eminent domain, and if the latter be necessary, it shall be carried out in the same manner as now provided by law for acquisition of right-of-way for state highways.

(4) Screen, if feasible, any junkyard lawfully in existence on March 20, 1967, which are within one thousand (1,000) feet of the nearest edge of the right-of-way and visible from the main traveled way of any highway on the interstate or primary system and not located within an industrial area, zoned or unzoned. The responsibility of the board for screening junkyards is limited to the size of the junkyards and height of storage existing as of March 20, 1967. Any screening, after March 20, 1967, required by an increase in the size of the junkyard or the height of the storage in it shall be the responsibility of the owner and will be done at his expense. The board is authorized to acquire by purchase, gift or the power of eminent domain the lands or interest in lands as may be necessary to provide adequate screening of junkyards, but eminent domain proceedings may not be undertaken to obtain adjacent lands unless they are owned by the owner of the junkyard or the lands of the junkyard are inadequate for this purpose. When the board determines that the topography of the land will not permit adequate screening of junkyards within one thousand (1,000) feet of the nearest edge of the right-of-way of the highway on the interstate or primary system or the screening of the junkyards would not be economically feasible, the board must acquire by gift, purchase or the power of eminent domain, any interests necessary to secure the removal or disposal of the junkyard.

History:

[40-313, added 1985, ch. 253, sec. 2, p. 603.]