Sawmill Road Remains On County Road List

Huntsville, TN (2011-02-22) Months of discussion on the matter of closing Sawmill Road in Robbins to the public at the request of the landowner has resulted in no action being taken by the Scott County Commission.

At the regularly scheduled meeting of the Scott County Commission Tuesday night, the body once again took up the task of determining a course of action in regards to a section of Sawmill Road. After tabling the issue at its January meeting to further discuss an easement issue with the petitioner, Lee Crabtree, the Commission again considered a resolution that would have set in motion the process of removing 1.6 miles of the roadbed, more specifically a section between Cecil Road and the Pemberton Cemetery, from the County Road List.

During the course of Tuesday night’s meeting, several concerned parties spoke to the Commission expressing their discontent over the possible closure the road to the public. William Bowling, a resident of Scott County, said that access to the cemetery was of vital concern. “My family and I try to get to the cemetery every year…and clean it up,” Bowling remarked. Also speaking Tuesday night was Robert Culver, who claimed closing the road would devalue his property, which adjoins the Crabtree tract. While the closure wouldn’t prevent Culver access to his tract, he was still concerned about the right to travel the section proposed for closure. “I don’t want to have to ask permission to go through there,” Culver said.

Crabtree also spoke to the Commission, attempting to ease the concerns of his neighbors. “I don’t mean to cause a problem for folks,” Crabtree stated. His main concern remains the condition of the road, and the inability of the County Road Department to keep the steep grades maintained. Road Superintendent Donald “Dick” Sexton has stated that maintaining the road would not be cost effective for his Department, and recommended the Commission remove the road from the County Road List.

However, during the course of the conversation, the discussion took a different twist. “Can anyone in this room tell me how this road became a County road?” Crabtree inquired. Since the County has no documentation on the road, Crabtree implied the government had taken his property without right or cause. Reading from Article I, Section 21 of the Tennessee Constitution, Crabtree spoke, “No man's particular services shall be demanded, or property taken, or applied to public use, without the consent of his representatives, or without just compensation being made therefore.” This drew the ire of County Attorney John Beaty. “Mr. Crabtree, is it now your position that the County illegally seized your land?” Beaty exclaimed. Beaty went on to note that the first County Road list was published in 1999, which was mandated that year by state law. Crabtree noted that in his research, he had not come across any formal resolution by the Commission adopting Sawmill Road. “That road has been a County road since at least the 1940’s,” said Commissioner June Jeffers, whose family resides in the area. Since most county or public roads in rural counties were established through verbal agreements or common use by its residents, the County doesn’t have deeds or other conveyances on the majority of older roads in the county.

In the end, the resolution was brought to the Commission for action, where it died without a motion. No further action is scheduled to be taken on the issue.