Marion County settles two property takings and approves suing for eminent domain over two more

Tuesday’s agenda closed a Northwest 49th Street lawsuit with $225,000 and $125,955 deals and authorized eminent domain if talks fail on two other parcels.

Matthew Minter and Mounir Bouyounes seated at the commission dais during a Marion County hearing.

352todayThe Eberhart and Cunningham settlements still need a judge’s signature, while the Hamp and Marion Violet resolutions are the step the county must take before it can file.

OCALA, FL (352Today.com) – Four eminent domain-related items were on the Marion County Commission agenda this week, so we asked the county to clarify how the process works. Here is what the county said, and what those four items actually do.

According to Marion County Public Information Specialist Stacie Causey, the process isn’t the same for every parcel and is governed by Florida Statutes Chapter 73. Under Chapter 73, the county has to make a written offer and try to buy the interest before it can sue. That chapter also sets the rules for full compensation, including the owner’s attorney fees and expert costs. If the owner does not agree, Chapter 74 lets the county file a petition in eminent domain, deposit its estimate of compensation and ask a judge for title before a jury sets the final price.

What happens after that depends on the parcel, Causey said. Two of Tuesday’s items settle a lawsuit the county has already filed. The other two are the resolutions the statute requires before a new suit can be filed.

The first settlement buys a whole homesite. According to Causey, mediation on September 8, 2026 produced an agreement to purchase Kimberly R. and Terry A. Eberhart’s entire property for $225,000, rather than the partial taking the county first sought. Causey said the owners were claiming a large amount of severance damages on that partial taking, and buying the whole parcel was the more economical approach. The county will own the land and can sell the remainder, with the residence, to recoup some of the cost. The deal also gives the Eberharts three months of extended possession and lets them remove one shed. The property is project parcel 9, at 5510 NW 49th Place. It is in case 2026-CA-0397, where a judge signed an order of taking on June 11. The settlement still needs a stipulated final judgment.

The second settlement, mediated September 9, 2026, is $125,955. Causey said that figure includes attorney fees, expert fees, and any damages. As conditions of the deal, the county will build a new driveway up to the right-of-way line on Northwest 57th Avenue and remove a dilapidated shed as part of construction. James Robert and Brenda L. Cunningham own that lot, project parcel 48, at 5696 NW 49th Place. That agreement also still needs the judge’s signature.

The other two items have not reached court.

For Northwest 49th Street Phase 3, from County Road 225A to Northwest 44th Avenue, the county needs a perpetual slope easement from Ralph M. and Carol E. Hamp at 4880 NW 49th Street. Causey said attempts to negotiate that acquisition have been unsuccessful, so eminent domain is likely the next step, and the authorizing resolution is required to proceed. The county’s appraisal of the easement is $48,700.

The fourth resolution authorizes the county engineer and the county attorney to file if negotiations remain unsuccessful. Causey said the take is a fee-simple interest for right-of-way expansion and a small temporary construction easement, appraised at $27,580. The land is owned by Marion Violet LLC and sits on Southwest 80th Avenue Segment 1, from Southwest 90th Street to about a half-mile north of Southwest 38th Street.