A land grab is being pursued by council bosses so part of a controversial £4m revamp of one of Norwich's busiest roads can happen.
Norfolk County Council is making major changes to Dereham Road, between Bowthorpe and New Costessey, with new bus and cycle lanes, wider pavements and crossings due to be installed.
Part of the scheme is for a new segregated cycle lane and footpath, but the council needs to seize two patches of land off Dereham Road to enable part of the scheme to happen.
The Conservative-controlled council does not have quite enough land to enable it to put in a segregated cycle lane and footpath by the northern side of the road not far from the Bowthorpe roundabout.
So, the council is going to use legal powers to seize two small patches of land to enable that work to be done.
Council officers say that the land - measuring 47.3m2 and 36m2 - is not registered and that it has placed notices to try to identify the owner.
They say no claims of ownership have been received as a result, so Jane James, the council's cabinet member for corporate services and innovation, has given the go-ahead for the authority to use compulsory purchase powers to obtain the land.
The council has not revealed how much the process will cost.
The Dereham Road plans have prompted controversy, with claims - dismissed by council leaders - that the scheme will increase congestion.
The scheme is being paid for using some of the £32m Transforming Cities Fund money awarded to the county council by the Department for Transport for a string of schemes.
HOW CAN A COUNCIL GRAB LAND IT DOES NOT OWN?
The county council recently went through a similar land acquisition process as part of the Heartsease roundabout revamp.
It transpired the council did not own two patches of land on either side of Harvey Lane needed for a cycle lane and footpath in the £4.4m scheme.
Greene King was later identified as the owner of two plots outside the Heartsease pub and a compulsory purchase order is proceeding for the council to buy them from the brewery.
The authority staked a claim for the other section near the former Lloyd's bank site as it is unregistered and no legal owner has been identified.
Under the 1980s Highways Act councils can acquire land for the construction or improvements of a highway.
If someone were to come forward who could legally prove they owned the land, then the council would agree to compensate them for taking it from them.
Over 85pc of land in England and Wales has a registered owner but if it is found to be unregistered with the HM Land Registry, anyone can apply to take possession of it.
But if somebody comes along within a 12-year time frame and says it is their land, they can claim it back providing they have valid evidence to prove it.
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