Group will ask Port of Woodland to stay out of eminent domain conflict
Wednesday, May 14, 2008 11:32 PM PDT
By The Daily News
Printable version
E-mail this articleA land-rights group will ask the Port of Woodland on Thursday to reconsider the port’s role in a land dispute between a Woodland family and the federal government.
Port of Woodland is part of a coalition of lower Columbia River ports seeking to obtain 447-acre Martin Island in the Woodland area to offset, or “mitigate,” the ecological impacts of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ project to deepen Columbia shipping lanes.
As the local sponsors of the project, the ports are legally obligated to land for mitigation projects. However, negotiations with the Colf family or Woodland have so far failed. If the two sides can’t reach an agreement soon, the Corps has said it will ask the ports to use their eminent domain authority and get a court order to take over Martin Island. Courts would decide how much the family would be paid.
The Battle Ground-based American Land Rights Association, a private property rights group, is urging the Port of Woodland to back out of any attempt to seize the Colf’s property through the courts.
It is unclear what would happen if Port of Woodland backed off a demand for the Colf’s land and the other sponsoring ports — Longview, Kalama, St. Helens, Vancouver and Portland — take the matter to court.
The port meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. in port offices, 141 Davidson Ave., Woodland.
farwest mojo wrote on May 15, 2008 7:24 AM:
Dredge spoils?
I-5, BN are right there.
I think the Port of Woodland, Oregon, Washington and US could band together and build a WORLD CLASS SEAPORT in that area that would compete with Seattle, SF for the next 200 years.
Portland T-6 is a Maritime Transportation culdesac compared to Woodlands potential.
Environmental laws now require habitat replacement. Yet, seems these PUBLIC OWNED Ports want to condemn, cast the Owners to the wind and take over ownership instead of offering Market Price and relocation compensation.
If this goes to Court, I hope the Coalition can band together and force a PUBLIC VOTE in the area of EVERY Port that supports ripping off private property owners...not just Woodland. "
Ports obligations wrote on May 16, 2008 3:33 PM:
According to news reports there are plenty of willing sellers up and down the lower Columbia. Why can't the ports get together, tell the COE to back off the Colf property and start buying other sites for mitigation?
If COE/Ports just gotta have a piece of the Colf's something is wrong. There is more to this than meets the eye but nobody is talking. Is there maybe more to this than just the COE being the big bully? Did the Colf's PO the Port of Woodland way back when and it's payback time?
How come the sitting Woodland port commissioner recently resigned? Did it have anything to do with this donnybrook or was it over the choice of a new Port Director with minimal experience?
How come the COE does all the talking but it's the Ports that have to take the Colf's to eminent domain process?
C'mon you News reporters. Act like investigative journalists instead of just publishing press releases. "
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