LS Power, Landowner Agree to Extend Sale Option
By Terry Hudson, Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Iowa
Jan. 19–WATERLOO — Merle Bell, the owner of the 37-acre farm inside the proposed site of LS Power’s coal-fired power plant, has agreed with the company on a land sale option extension, according to a spokesman for LS Power.
“We had an extension option to purchase and that was to expire at the end of last year,” Mark Milburn said by phone Saturday. “We kind of left it up to Mr. Bell, whether we exercised the option and purchased the land or if he wanted to extend. This week he decided to extend, which is a great result for us and for him.”
LS Power has not yet received state regulatory approvals to build the plant, but the company was poised to buy the farm if Bell did not agree to an option extension.
“He wasn’t ready to move and we weren’t ready to buy, so it’s a win-win for us,” he said.
“He can continue to control the property while we continue to develop the project,” Milburn added. “We’re thrilled with the result and glad we could work something out with Mr. Bell.”
Bell could not be reached Saturday. However, he did speak with the Courier last week, before the latest deal was struck.
“All I’m doing is paying for what I did four years ago,” Bell said. “I’ve got no choice.”
That’s when Bell agreed to the real estate option, in which LS Power paid Bell to have the option to buy out his property for the plant project at a later date. He initially refused. But LS Power indicated it intended to pursue the project with other adjacent property owners.
Bell’s wife, who was in ill health at the time, said she did not want to live near the plant if the company bypassed Bell’s property and built it nearby. So Bell agreed to the option, believing they would be forced to move anyway if the plant located nearby. His wife died less than a year later.
Bell opposed annexation of the site into the city of Waterloo before a state board last year. He also said he would not agree to an extension of the option, which expired at the end of 2007.
However, LS Power recently notified Bell’s attorney, before the option expired, that the company was exercising its option to buy the property.
Contact Terry Hudson at (319) 291-1582 or terry.hudson@wcfcourier.com.
—–
To see more of the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.wcfcourier.com/.
Copyright (c) 2008, Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier, Iowa
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.