Hermitage Municipal Authority has approved condemning some properties for sewer improvement projects, but doesn't expect to have to take any land through eminent domain.

The authority has awarded contracts to replace the force main and interceptor sanitary sewer lines in the areas of South Robertson, Keel Ridge, Virginia and Hogback Road.

City officials have been contacting residents and asking them to allow 20-foot permanent easements and 20-foot construction easements for the work, solicitor Thomas W. Kuster said Wednesday.

The construction easement allows construction vehicles to go onto properties for the work. The permanent easement would prohibit the construction of a building over the lines, but residents otherwise can freely use the surfaces of their properties, Kuster said.

Out of a total of about 30 property owners who are being asked to grant easements, officials have obtained at least preliminary approvals from all but nine.

Tom Darby, water pollution plant superintendent, said he doesn't expect the remaining property owners will hold out.

If they do, the authority has the power to condemn the property through eminent domain and essentially take the easements it needs.

Kuster suggested going ahead with the condemnation proceedings to save the authority from having to do it later. Officials want construction to begin as soon as possible. If a property owner refuses to grant an easement, it would delay construction.

Kuster added that the authority has begun condemnation proceedings on many other projects, but never had to follow through with the legal process.

The easements needed go through wooded areas and some residents are worried about how the work will affect their lawns and trees, Darby said.

The project will replace transmission lines that take sewage from collection systems to pump stations.