Friday, October 17, 2014

Judge Approves Land Agreement on US Nitrogen Pipeline

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

A chancery court judge has given his approval to an agreement sought by 47 Greene County landowners to set limits on what property contractors for a controversial pipeline for US Nitrogen can occupy.
The three-page order was approved by Judge Douglas T. Jenkins, but the dispute over the pipeline and property rights of adjacent landowners is far from over.
The order states that contractors on the project "will not trespass or otherwise enter upon, utilize or damage plaintiff's' land" without prior consent.
The order was agreed to by D. Scott Hurley, the lawyer for the property owners, and lawyers for US Nitrogen and the Industrial Development Board of Greeneville and Greene County.
But that agreement only resolves one of many issues raised in the still pending lawsuit. Further hearings are expected on challenges to the legality of the agreement between the IDB and US Nitrogen.
In addition, one of the plaintiff's, Don Bible, is charging that the rights-of-way claimed by US Nitrogen under a state permit actually is infringing on his and other residents' property.
Bible cited a legal opinion from attorney Kelley Hinsley which concluded from land records that the right-of-way along the pipeline route was only 30 feet, not the 40 feet claimed.
Bible contends that as a result he and other property owners are having miles of their land taken over improperly.
US Nitrogen officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In addition to the suit before Jenkins, several other lawsuits have been filed challenging the project including one in chancery court in Nashville. A hearing in that case has been sent for Oct. 24.



Wednesday, October 8, 2014

US Nitrogen, Landowners Have Tentative Agreement

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

The attorney for 47 landowners along a proposed 12 mile long Greene County pipeline says a tentative agreement has been reached with US Nitrogen regarding encroachment on their properties.
D. Scott Hurley, the property owners' lawyer, said Wednesday that under the agreement workers installing the pipeline will not encroach on private land unless they have permission in advance or have been granted a formal easement.
Hurley said the exact wording of the agreement was now being hammered out and it will then be subject to approval by Chancery Court Judge Douglas T. Jenkins.
The general agreement was reached in  a court session Wednesday before Jenkins in Rogersville.
Hurley said the court hearing was sought after the landowners said they were told by US Nitrogen officials and deputy sheriffs that "their property could and would be accessed and if they resisted they would be arrested."
A spokeswoman for US Nitrogen, Amanda Jennings, said in a statement that US Nitrogen never intended to access private property without permission or an easement.
"Because the construction is in close proximity to a busy roadway, US Nitrogen is working with the Greene County Sheriff’s Office to ensure safety for the duration of the pipeline construction," a statement from a US Nitrogen spokeswoman read.
"Two off-duty sheriff’s deputies will provide routine around-the-clock monitoring of the route, equipment and construction materials. The deputies will also help maintain a safe working environment for the construction team while deployed in the rights-of-way. The cost will be shouldered by US Nitrogen," she added.
"They (US Nitrogen) agreed they had no right to access private property," Hurley said, adding that company officials insisted that work on the pipeline could be accomplished by utilizing the rights-of-way of two state highways. "We believe it's impossible," he said.
The company, which is building a multimillion dollar ammonium nitrate manufacturing plant got approval to utilize the rights of way from the TN Department of Transportation. The pipeline is designed to deliver and return some 2 million gallons of water per day for use in the manufacturing process.
That state approval, however, is being challenged in separate litigation.
The agreement comes in a suit filed in Greene County Chancery Court which challenges actions taken by the Industrial Development Board of Greeneville and Greene County which will take actual ownership of the pipeline from Greeneville to the Nolichucky River.
"We believe the IDB exceeded its authority," Hurley said, adding that the plaintiffs also believe the board  violated the state Open Meeting and public records laws in the process.
Those issues will be the subject of future hearings and Hurley said he is hopeful that will happen quickly because of the speed with which the company is proceeding with the pipeline installation.
"They are obviously in a hurry," Hurley said.
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Tuesday, October 7, 2014

Ruling Expected Wednesday in US Nitrogen Suit

A formal ruling is expected within a day in a suit filed by opponents of a proposed Greene County ammonium nitrate manufacturing facility, which includes a controversial pipeline to the Nolichucky River.
The ruling is expected from Chancery Court Judge Douglas T. Jenkins, who presided over a hearing on the issue Tuesday. The ruling is expected to address what properties the pipeline workers can access.
The plaintiffs had also sought an order barring any work on the pipeline for 14 days. They also challenged the legality of the actions of the Industrial Development Board of Greeneville and Greene County regarding the project.
The hearing came even as work on that pipeline had commenced with Greene County Sheriff's Department personnel on hand.
"Because the construction is in close proximity to a busy roadway, US Nitrogen is working with the Greene County Sheriff’s Office to ensure safety for the duration of the pipeline construction," a statement from a US Nitrogen spokeswoman read.
"Two off-duty sheriff’s deputies will provide routine around-the-clock monitoring of the route, equipment and construction materials. The deputies will also help maintain a safe working environment for the construction team while deployed in the rights-of-way. The cost will be shouldered by US Nitrogen," she added.
The case before Judge Jenkins is just one of several suits challenging the project. Another suit filed last week in Chancery Court in Nashville challenges the legality of the permit for the project issued by the Tennessee Department of Transportation.
The pipeline which will be used to pull two millions of gallons of water per day from the river will run along the rights-of-way of two state highways.
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Wednesday, October 1, 2014

US Nitrogen Amasses Dozens of Acres

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

US Nitrogen, the company building a multimillion manufacturing facility in Tennessee's Greene County, has amassed dozens of properties totaling hundreds of acres at a cost well in excess of $7 million, most of it paid to private landowners
After acquiring the properties, records show, the company has turned over many of them to to the Industrial Development Board of Greeneville and Greene County for a dollar, effectively removing them from the tax rolls.
The land purchases which date back to 2010 are ongoing, according to a US Nitrogen spokeswoman and additional purchases will come as properties become available.
One of the recent purchases, county land records show, involved the purchase of nearly 37 acres from two couples, Janey and Billy J. Larkin and Diane L.Smith and Donald L. Smith. US Nitrogen paid $700,000, county records show.
Asked about the recent purchase, a company spokeswoman, Amanda Jennings, said the property near Gravel Woods Road will be part of a 480 acre "aesthetic green zone" surrounding the 50-acre manufacturing site.
"US Nitrogen will consider purchasing additional property to supplement this area as property becomes available," she said in a statement.
Several properties, deeds show, were purchased by US Nitrogen from the Cansler family and related companies. These include 43.5 acres from Johnnie Cansler for a $500,000 purchase price in February of 2012. That followed a purchase of 74.5 acres from Cansler for $558,750 a month earlier.
The Greene County Foundation sold 26.6 acres on Pottertown Road to US Nitrogen on the same day for $286,995.
Asked in a telephone interview how the purchases came about, Johnnie Cansler said, "I don't know. They wanted the land."
Cansler added that the family was satisfied with the transactions.
Purchases from other parties have continued in 2014 with a one acre purchase for $90,000 in May and 5 acres on Gravel Woods Road purchased for $200,000.
County records show that on Jan 1, 2013 16 of the properties purchased by the company were sold to the Industrial Development Board for $1. Included were two properties purchased earlier from Cansler and another parcel bought from a Cansler family partnership.
Another parcel purchased by US Nitrogen from Joy L. Rader, the Greene County Register of Deeds, was included in the package of properties sold by USN to the county development board.
Records at the Greene County Registry of Deeds show US Nitrogen purchased an option on more than 23 acres of land on Sept. 1, 2013 from J.W. Douthat, who was then a member of the Old Knox Utility District Board.
Though US Nitrogen originally indicated it would be purchasing millions of gallons of water per day from the district, it has since sought approval to run 12 miles of pipeline directly to the Nolichucky River.
Lawyers for Old Knox have since filed a suit seeking to block the pipeline plans.
The Douthat option is part of USN's new plan.
Jennings, the company spokeswoman, said in an email response to questions that the Douthat option remains in effect, but she declined to disclose how much was paid for it.
"The land was identified by a series of third-party studies of several properties along the river as the optimal area to avoid impact on wildlife and areas of historical significance for the intake and outfall structures for the proposed IDB-owned industrial water system," she wrote in the email.
Douthat, who also has served on the IDB, encountered criticism from opponents of the $200 million project when he voted last summer on a matter involving the project.
Douthat did not respond to a phone call seeking comment. Previously he has stated that he saw no reason to recuse himself from voting on the project.
Four separate legal challenges to the US Nitrogen project are pending in the court system.
Don Bible, who is a plaintiff in one of those suits said that as far as he can tell it will be years before any property taxes will be paid on any of the nearly 500 acres, including those sold to the IDB.
Supporters contend that the new jobs created by US Nitrogen will provide a major boost to the local economy.
Late last week the project won key approvals from the Tennessee Valley Authority and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The Tennessee Department of Transportation previously reversed itself and approved a revised version of the pipeline plan.
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