Warrenton, Or – Northern Star Natural Gas (NSNG) began looking at the Skipanon Peninsula as a site for an LNG facility at the time that Calpine looked at it, according to NSNG spokesperson Joe Desmond. As site control is a fundamental prerequisite for any development project to proceed, NSNG was concerned with the problems associated with the property where the site was proposed. It concluded that the site was inadequate to handle an LNG terminal. Early in 2008, Pinnacle Long was formed as a subsidiary of NSNG for the purpose, according Desmond, of completing additional research to reconfirm their original conclusions about the peninsula site and to look into what else it could do with property there.
“The peninsula has a deeded county road running through it stating that it is to be open to the public forever so that the public can access the peninsula. The site is in continual use by the public,” Desmond commented in talking about one of the problems that the company saw with using the peninsula. “The deed reads, ‘that the road is to HAVE AND TO HOLD the above described premises [the county road] unto the public forever.” The county road was deeded in June of 1967, and the deed was recorded. The road was never deeded to the City of Warrenton or any other municipality. Warrenton’s city manager and Clatsop County’s manager have both stated that they believe the road to belong to the city of Warrenton, however, both acknowledge that it is a matter that needs “to be looked into” before further comment can be made.
Whether or not the city of Warrenton maintains the road or the whether the county has given the road to the city is not the issue, according to Neikes. There is no recorded deed that the action took place, and as such the county still has ultimate ownership of the road and is the only body that can vacate it, after a public hearing takes place, unless 100% of the landowners agree to it being vacated.
In listing the problems with the site Desmond stated that Jim Neikes had let people know that he had concerns regarding the survey of the site. Neikes contends that Oregon LNG’s proposal would require drainage of a pond and removal of wetlands located on his property. Neikes verified that he will not give permission for either of these planned operations as Pinnacle LLC has leased the property and still has plans to use the pond and the wetlands.
When Neikes approached Peter Hansen regarding his concerns about the drainage of the pond, the removal of the wetlands as well as a removal of a dike and what it would do to the value of his property Neikes said Hansen didn’t want to talk to him about it. When the same concerns were discussed with Pinnacle it was clear that they would not be using the land for an LNG facility and would not include destroying the pond, wetlands or the dike and Neikes agreed to lease the land to them.
Another of the concerns with the site, according to Desmond and Neikes, are regarding the site boundaries and other legal concerns with the property itself. Neikes says that he made it clear to the Port of Astoria that the boundary, as defined in the lease between the Port of Astoria and Oregon LNG encroached on his property. Furthermore, according to Neikes, the land itself could be contested as it was deeded by Tom McCall to the Port of Astoria in 1969. In part the deed for 191 acres reads that the state of Oregon, “does hereby remise, release, and forever quitclaim unto the said Port of Astoria, all its right, title and interest in and to [legal description].” The site that Oregon LNG is currently renting from the Port of Astoria is for the same amount that the Port of Astoria pays to lease it from the state, and is a part of the 191 acres.
“The state took the land back from the Port in 2004 and then turned around and is leasing it to the Port, how much sense does that make?” questioned Neikes. “That’s something that should be looked into.” Steve Purchase, with the Oregon Land Division, was asked under what authority the state took the lands back from the Port. Purchase has said that he was having staff pull the documents so that he would be able to comment on them.
Oregon LNG, in a response to FERC regarding Neikes’ and Pinnacle Long’s letters, stated that the proposed terminal site is on land that has always belonged to the state of Oregon and makes no reference to McCall’s 1969 deed.
In October of 2000 the Division of State Lands entered into a contract for a Reciprocal Easement for Access Purposes with the Port of Astoria to create a private roadway with a locked gate on a road that the document stated was already vacated by the City of Warrenton. The road named in the document was King Street, which is the county road that runs through the Oregon LNG site and up to the pier line of the Skipanon Peninsula. When asked if he remembered the document and what the private roadway was going to be for Purchase said he would look into that issue as well. Purchase’s signature is on the easement.
Neikes also contends that first Calpine and now Oregon LNG have broken their lease with the Port of Astoria. “Section 5.2 of their lease states that Calpine would have the plans for a golf course developed and given to the Port of Astoria within the first two years after signing the sublease of the Skipanon Peninsula. The sublease was signed on November 5, 2004 and by the end of 2006 Calpine was in the final throes of “restructuring” and Oregon LNG had acquired the project and the sublease with all of its provisions intact. To this day, according to Neikes, Oregon LNG is in violation of its sublease with the Port.
Desmond stated that because there were so many concerns with the property itself it was apparent that the Skipanon Peninsula would be entirely inadequate for their project so NSNG decided to look elsewhere for a property and found the Bradwood Landing site. Pinnacle Long, llc, also bought property on the Skipanon Peninsula which Desmond contends is part of the land that Oregon LNG is claiming pre-filings to FERC as a part of the site.
Oregon LNG, in its letter to FERC described Pinnacle Long as a “shell” company for Northern Star Natural Gas, because “Pinnacle has no history’ of operations whatsoever, and did not come into existence until March 17.2008.” Oregon LNG has no history of operating before being created by Leucadia National Corporation specifically for the project in Warrenton, along with LNG Development Company LLC, Oregon LNG Marketing Company, LLC, and Oregon Pipeline Company, LLC all owned by Leucadia with no prior history of operation before the proposed Skipanon Peninsula project.
No comments:
Post a Comment