Grain Belt Express has finally filed a condemnation case in Missouri. It wants to
...condemn land and interests therein for any public use or purpose, and to acquire perpetual easements in, over, and across lands in which defendants have an interest, together with rights of ingress and egress to said lands.
Here's the gory details
The property interests and easement rights which Plaintiff seeks to condemn and are necessary for the Project include and are described as follows:
rights to develop, permit, construct, reconstruct, repair, improve, alter, replace,
operate, use, inspect, maintain and remove a transmission line, which transmission
line may include poles, towers and structures, such wires and cables as Grain Belt
shall from time to time suspend therefrom, foundations, footings, attachments,
anchors, ground connections, communications devices, and other equipment,
accessories, access roads and appurtenances, as Grain Belt may deem necessary or
desirable in connection therewith and to study or inspect in preparation therefor,
including survey, soil sampling, geotechnical evaluation, environmental tests,
archeological assessments, and transmission and interconnection studies. The
permanent rigbt-of-way may be used for the transmission of electrical energy and
for communication purposes, whether existing now or in the future in order to
facilitate the delivery of electrical energy. The easement rights include the nonexclusive
right of ingress and egress over the Easement Property itself in order to obtain access to the permanent right-of-way,
and over the Defendant's property adjacent to the Easement Property and lying
between public or private roads. Grain Belt shall, without being liable for damages,
have the right from time to time, including after the initial construction of the
transmission line, to clear the Easement Property of any improvements or other
structures to the extent that they interfere with Grain Belt's use of the Easement
Property as described herein, except fences (provided Grain Belt shall at all times
have access through any such fence by means of a gate); control, cut down, trim
and remove trees and underbrush from the Easement Property; and cut down and
trim any tree encroaching upon the Easement Property or the transmission line that
in the reasonable opinion of Grain Belt may interfere with the safety, proper
operation and/or maintenance of the transmission line.
What for?
...to construct and maintain a high voltage, direct current transmission line and associated facilities commonly referred to as the Grain Belt Express Project.
Yeah, well, I'm betting it has a more common name, but I don't use such language here.
But GBE says this won't be burdensome to the landowner
But GBE says this won't be burdensome to the landowner
The use of the foregoing Property Interests, including any expansion of its facilities within the Easement Property by Plaintiff, upon condemnation thereof, does not impose an
unreasonable burden or impact on Defendants' property or Defendants' activities thereon, and
Defendants shall retain the right to use the Easement Property in any manner not inconsistent with the rights of Plaintiff described herein, including use of the Easement Property for agricultural or other similar purposes.
So, what happens next? The Court
Appoint[s] three disinterested residents of Buchanan County, Missouri as the Commissioners to ascertain and assess the damages, if any, that the Defendants may sustain and the just compensation, if any, to which they may be entitled by reason of the appropriation of the Easement Property and
Property Interests;
It could get expensive.
But why now? GBE says it needs to take this property NOW to construct a merchant transmission line that only has one known customer. If GBE does not have enough customers to create a revenue stream adequate to pay its costs to build and operate, then the project will not be built.
Why would any court authorize a taking for a speculative project? If GBE doesn't find enough customers, the line won't be built and it will have acquired property that is NEVER put into public use. This may keep lawyers in Missouri busy for years to come...
Is this what the Missouri Public Service Commission envisioned?
What if you build it and they don't come?
But why now? GBE says it needs to take this property NOW to construct a merchant transmission line that only has one known customer. If GBE does not have enough customers to create a revenue stream adequate to pay its costs to build and operate, then the project will not be built.
Why would any court authorize a taking for a speculative project? If GBE doesn't find enough customers, the line won't be built and it will have acquired property that is NEVER put into public use. This may keep lawyers in Missouri busy for years to come...
Is this what the Missouri Public Service Commission envisioned?
What if you build it and they don't come?
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