Chap. 389.——An ACT to amend and re-enact Sections 2 and 6 of an act en-
titled an act to authorize the State Highway Commissioner to acquire, by
gift, purchase, condemnation, or otherwise, scenic easements, or in lieu
thereof parcels of land, on either side or both sides of the roadway or
highway from a point at or near Jarman’s Gap and extending generally in
‘a southwesterly direction to the North Carolina line, which roadway or
highway the State Highway Commissioner has been heretofore authorized
to convey to the United States, and which has been set apart and desig-
nated by the United States as the proposed Shenandoah-Great Smoky Moun-
tains National Parkway; and to authorize the State Highway Commissioner
to transfer, assign and convey to the United States said scenic easements,
or land, so acquired, approved March 12, 1936, said Section 2 defining
scenic easement and designating said roadway as the Blue Ridge Parkway,
and Section 6 vesting the Highway Commissioner with the power of emi-
nent domain; to change the section number of said Section 6 to Section 5
and to prescribe the procedure in condemnation proceedings for the acqui-
sition of the roadway or parkway and lands or scenic easements adjacent
thereto. [S B 253]

Approved March 31, 1938

1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia, That sec-
tion two and section six of an act entitled an act to authorize the State
Highway Commissioner to acquire, by gifts, purchase, condemnation,
or otherwise, scenic easements, or in lieu thereof parcels of land, on
either side or both sides of the roadway or highway from a point at
or near Jarman’s Gap and extending generally in a southwesterly
direction to the North Carolina line, which roadway or highway the
State Highway Commissioner has been heretofore authorized to con-
vey to the United States, and which has been set apart and designated
by the United States as the proposed Shenandoah-Great Smoky Moun-
tains National Parkway; and to authorize the State Highway Com-
missioner to transfer, assign and convey to the United States said
scenic easements, or land, so acquired, approved March twelfth, nine-
teen hundred and thirty-six, be amended and re-enacted so as to read
as follows:

Section 2. Definitions——The following terms, whenever used or
referred to in this act shall have the following meaning, unless a dif-
ferent meaning clearly appears from the context:

(a) Scenic Easement.—Scenic easement shall mean the easement
or right of the Commonwealth of Virginia or its grantee or assignee,
the United States of America, to restrict the use of any and all lands
covered by or subject to said easements so that the owner or owners
of said land, or any part thereof, or their grantees or assignees, shall
not have the privilege or right, (first) to erect or authorize the erec-
tion of any building, pole line, or other structure, except for farm or
residential purposes, (second) to erect any commercial buildings, power
lines, or industrial or commercial structures, except that existing com-
mercial buildings may be altered or the property may be otherwise
improved for the purpose of continuing the present established use
or other use with the consent of the Commonwealth or its grantee or
assignee, (third) to construct thereon any private drive or road, ex-
cept with the consent and approval of the Commonwealth of Virginia,
or its grantee or assignee, (fourth) to require the Commonwealth of
Virginia or its assigns to construct any access or drive thereon,
(fifth) to remove from or to break, cut, injure, destroy on the said
land, any mature or stable trees or shrubs without the consent of
the Commonwealth of Virginia, its grantee or assignee, except such
seedling shrubbery or seedling trees as may be grubbed up or cut down
in accordance with usual farm practice and residential maintenance,
and except that cultivated crops, including orchard fruits, may be
pruned, sprayed, harvested, and otherwise maintained in accordance
with usual farming practice, (sixth) to place thereon any dumps of
ashes, trash, sawdust, or any unsightly or offensive material, (seventh)
to place or display thereon any signs, billboards or advertisement, ex-
cept one sign not greater than eighteen inches by twenty-four inches
advertising the sale of the property or produce raised upon it.

In the event the State Highway Commissioner, in the condemna-
tion or purchase of scenic easements as hereinafter authorized, should
desire to condemn or purchase an easement containing a part but not
all of the restrictions above set forth, the deed or condemnation peti-
tion shall set forth the specific restrictions purchased or sought to be
condemned; and same shall be deemed a scenic easement within the
meaning of this act.

(b) Parkway.—The term “Parkway” shall mean that recently
added portion of the State Highway System extending from at or near
Jarman’s Gap, in a general southwesterly direction to the North Caro-
lina line, which has been adopted by the Department of the Interior of
the United States as the location of the proposed Blue Ridge Parkway.

(c) The parkway as defined herein and which has been designated
in former acts as the Shenandoah-Great Smoky Mountains National
Parkway shall hereafter be known as the Blue Ridge Parkway, or
by such title as may be hereafter designated by the Congress of the
United States. , ,

Section 5. The State Highway Commissioner may condemn for
said parkway and such additional lands, including scenic easements,
as are herein referred to, and for such purposes said State Highway
Commissioner is hereby not only vested with the power of eminent
domain but is also vested with all the rights of possession and other
rights and powers conferred upon him as such commissioner by vir-
tue of the provisions of section ten of the act creating the State High-
way Commission, approved March twenty-fourth, nineteen hundred
and twenty-two, and acts amendatory thereof, and condemnation pro-
ceedings may in all respects, except as is hereinafter specified, be in
accordance with the provisions of said section ten of said act creating
the State Highway Commission, as heretofore or hereafter amended.
In the event the commissioner proposes to condemn, at the same time,
both for the parkway, as herein defined, or any part thereof, and
adjacent lands for park purposes, and/or scenic easements, he may
for this purpose institute one proceeding and file one petition against
the landowner or owners or landowners. In all such condemnation
matters the enhancement, if any, in the value of the remaining property
of the landowner by reason of the establishment of the parkway and
adjacent scenic park or any improvements contemplated or made by
said commissioner, or his grantee or assignee, on said parkway and on
any additional land in connection therewith, including scenic or park
land or scenic easements, shall be offset against the damages, if any,
resulting to such remaining property of such landowner by reason
of such establishment, construction, or improvement, provided the en-
hancement in value shall not be offset against the value of the property
and/or scenic easement taken; and provided further, that if such en-
hancement in value shall exceed the damage, there shall be no recovery
over against the landowner for such excess; provided still further,
however, in cases where said “parkway”, as herein defined, has already
been acquired, and only adjacent lands or scenic easements are being
condemned, then, in determining the enhancement, if any, in value
of the remaining property of the landowner the establishment of the
parkway itself, and any improvement contemplated or made thereon,
shall not be taken into consideration, but only the enhancement, if
any, resulting from the establishment of the adjacent park lands or
scenic easement shall be considered and offset against damages only
as is hereinabove set forth.

In any petition to condemn in one proceeding the fee simple title
to the “parkway” or roadway as defined in this act, it shall be suffi-
cient to set out in the petition the description of the entire tract of
land sought to be condemned without describing separately in said
petition the part to be used for “parkway” or roadway purposes as
distinguished from the portion of said tract which will be adjacent
thereto; except that when a scenic easement is to be condemned in
connection with the condemning of the fee simple title to the parkway
or roadway as defined in this act and/or adjacent lands for park pur-
poses, then said scenic easement shall be set forth in a separate de-
scription, but in the same petition.
Section 6. An emergency celstinig this act shall be in teres from
its passage.