3:36 p.m.: The state's Public Works Board on Monday cleared the way for the California High-Speed Rail Authority to begin negotiating for property in Fresno and Madera counties needed for high-speed train tracks.

In a meeting that lasted less than 10 minutes, the board -- which includes the directors of the state's Finance, General Services and Transportation departments -- voted 3-0 to approve the formal selection of 356 separate parcels by the rail authority.

The Public Works Board is in charge of buying land for highway and other transportation projects in the state.

Rail authority officials can now start making offers to owners whose property is targeted for the first stage of construction. Those parcels are either in the path of the tracks themselves or will be affected by related construction, including overpasses to carry city streets and county roads over the tracks or the relocation of Highway 99 between Ashlan and Clinton avenues.

"By enabling us to begin making offers to landowners for their property we are on our way to starting construction this summer," said Jeff Morales, CEO of the California High-Speed Rail Authority.

Monday: State leaders will consider giving the go-ahead for the California High-Speed Rail Authority to begin negotiating for property in Fresno and Madera counties needed for high-speed train tracks.

At its meeting today in Sacramento, the state's Public Works Board is expected to approve the formal selection of 356 separate parcels by the rail authority.

The Public Works Board, which includes the directors of the state's Finance, General Services and Transportation departments, is in charge of buying land for highway and other transportation projects in the state.

Also this week, five contracting teams are expected to submit their bids to design and build the first stretches of the proposed statewide rail system.

The Public Works Board's executive director, Greg Rogers, said selecting the parcels will let the rail authority begin making offers to owners whose property is targeted for the first stage of construction. Those parcels are either in the path of the tracks themselves or will be affected by related construction, including overpasses to carry city streets and county roads over the tracks or the relocation of Highway 99 between Ashlan and Clinton avenues.

The rail authority hopes to begin construction later this year on a 23-mile stretch from Avenue 17 east of Madera to downtown Fresno, even though it's facing lawsuits from property owners and others who are either unhappy with the route, dissatisfied with the agency's assessment of the project's environmental effects, or simply opposed to building the rail system.

First, however, the agency needs the Public Works Board's approval to proceed.

"It's an important step forward in the process as we move toward construction," said Jeffrey Morales, the authority's CEO.

"We cannot actually start the process of getting down to real discussions with property owners about how their situations will be handled" without today's anticipated action.

Detailed land plans

According to a detailed 152-page plan distributed to would-be contractors earlier this month, the agency would buy about 100 parcels on the list in their entirety -- mostly smaller lots where the amount of acreage left over from the railroad right of way, road relocations or other construction needs would be practically useless. On the rest of the properties, the authority would only buy portions needed for the route.