Three D Corp. v. Salt Lake City
Utah Court of Appeals
752 P.2d 1321 (Utah Ct. App. 1988)
The rights of access, light, and air are easements appurtenant to the land of an abutting owner on a street, and they are property rights forming part of the owner’s estate. The right of access to the highway is in the nature of a special easement, which exist as a right of ownership of abutting land, and is a substantial property right which may not be taken away or impaired without compensation.
Substantial and material impairment of a property owner’s right of access can constitute a compensable taking.
Where government action, not amounting to a physical taking, effectively deprives a property owner of reasonable access to property, the owner is entitled to compensation.