PETITION OF:

SECTION 1. All highways and portions of highways laid out or relocated by the county commissioners of Hampden county under sections one through sixteen of chapter eighty-two of the general laws, or its statutory predecessors, and located within the town of Granville, except the highways presently numbered route 57 and route 189, are hereafter to have the status of town ways laid out or relocated under sections twenty-one through twenty-four of said chapter eighty-two.

SECTION 2. The register of the Hampden county registry of deeds, the recorder of the land court, the commissioner of the highway department, the commissioner of capital asset management and maintenance, the secretary of administration and finance and the chief administrative officer of any other agency of the commonwealth that is the custodian of the records of Hampden county relating to the highways referred to in section 1 of this act shall, upon written request by the board of selectmen or town clerk of the town of Granville, within ten days of receipt of such request and without cost, provide copies of records, instruments and plans filed or recorded with said registry of deeds, land court or agency relating to said highways, certified by said register, recorder, commissioner, secretary or chief administrative officer to be true copies of such records, instruments and plans. The town clerk of Granville shall be the custodian of such certified copies.

SECTION 3. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general or special law to the contrary, all rights, title and interest in real property owned or held by Hampden county immediately before July 1, 1998 within the layouts of the highways referred to in section 1 of this act and adjoining such highways and acquired for highway purposes, including without limitation land or interests therein acquired for the purpose of draining such highways or having the surface of such adjoining land slope from the boundary of the location of such highways, and all fixtures and improvements used for highway purposes and located thereon or appurtenant thereto, are hereby transferred to the town of Granville to be held for public way purposes under the care, custody, management and control of the board or officers having charge of public ways in said town, presently the board of selectmen. The transfer under this section shall be effective and shall bind all persons, with or without notice, without any further action or documentation. Without derogating from the foregoing, the commissioner of capital asset management and maintenance may, from time to time, execute and record and file for registration with the Hampden registry of deeds or the land court, a certificate confirming the town of Granville’s ownership of any interest in real property formerly held by Hampden county pursuant to the provisions of this section.

SECTION 4. In connection with the relocation, alteration or discontinuance of such former highways, the town of Granville, acting by its board or officers having charge of public ways in said town, is authorized to release, transfer or convey any real property or interest in real property held by the town and no longer needed for public way purposes.

SECTION 5. The town of Granville, acting by the board or officers having charge of public ways in said town, is authorized to discontinue maintenance of such former highways in the manner and upon the finding set out in section thirty-two A of chapter eighty-two and thereafter such ways shall have the status of ways laid out by the town under section twenty-one of said chapter eighty-two as private ways for the use of one or more of the inhabitants of the town.

SECTION 6. This act shall take effect upon its passage.