13:12-17. Sale of canal property outside municipalities to municipalities; public sale

If any municipality mentioned in section 13:12-16 of this title shall fail to accept the terms and compensation for any such property fixed by the canal and banking company or upon review of its decision by the board of public utility commissioners as provided in said section 13:12-16 or if prior to the first day of January, one thousand nine hundred and thirty-one, any such municipality shall have failed to adopt the resolution mentioned in said section 13:12-16, or if prior to such date any such municipality shall have adopted a resolution declaring that it does not desire to acquire the property of the canal and banking company within its limits, then, and in either of such cases, the canal and banking company may transfer such property as hereinafter in this section provided.

In the first place, the canal and banking company shall offer, subject to the same review as provided in said section 13:12-16, to any municipality which shall have taken appropriate steps to acquire the canal property lying within its boundaries pursuant to said section 13:12-16, such portions of the canal lying in any municipality or municipalities which shall have failed to take the necessary steps to acquire such property, as shall form a single, contiguous tract capable of development for the purpose for which the first mentioned municipality shall have acquired its tract.

In the second place, if, after a reasonable time, any municipality to which any such canal property lying without its limits shall have been offered, shall fail to have availed itself of such offer, the canal and banking company, after advertisement, in such manner as may be determined by its board of directors, shall sell any unsold portions of the canal property to the highest bidder deemed by such board of directors to be responsible, at public or private sale; but no such sale shall be made unless first approved, in writing, by the governor of the state of New Jersey; and at such sale any municipality through which such canal may pass, either alone or jointly with other municipalities through which such canal may pass, may bid for any parcel of the canal so offered for sale.

Upon any such sale, any previous dedication of the property so sold to any public use shall cease and be of no further force and effect, and the purchaser shall be entitled to take and hold such property free from any previous dedication to any public use.

The canal company is also hereby authorized to sell, in such manner and for such price and upon such terms as its board of directors may deem advisable, the structures and parts thereof and other materials to be removed on dismantling the canal as provided for in section 13:12-19 of this title and other personal property no longer useful in connection with the canal.