New pipeline
threatens MV, Lisbon
Time for Mt Vernon and Lisbon Residents to Step Up Again.
Last winter Navigator Heartland Greenway LLC announced its hazardous critical state CO2 pipeline route near the town of Mt Vernon and south of Hwy 30. There was an outpouring of protest from the community and nearby rural residents resulting in outstanding letters and comments of opposition that were filed with the Iowa Utilities Board in docket # HPL- 2021-0003. Our community expressed their disgust and anger that a private, internationally financed pipeline company could use eminent domain to take our land and endanger the health and livelihood of our beloved neighborhood with a dangerous, unproven pipeline project. This spring Navigator pulled their plans, but Wolf Carbon Solutions then announced their plans to build a hazardous critical state CO2 pipeline near the previous route south of Hwy 30. They filed a permit application on June 27th with the Iowa Utilities Board. The new docket number is HPL-2022-0002. This new pipeline would be just as treacherous as the previously planned one, drastically impacting the natural balance of our rural area and reintroducing into the community the fear of pipeline accidents. The rural community is beginning to speak out and needs Mt Vernon’s and Lisbon’s support. Step up again. Please write your heartfelt objections to the Iowa Utilities Board protesting the Wolf hazardous pipeline and the unethical use of eminent domain by a private corporation to procure easements.
To Submit an objection: https://efs.iowa.gov/efs/ShowCommentsAndObjections.do?displayScreen=create The new docket number is HPL-2022-0002. Please get involved.
Michael Daly
Lisbon
Property owners:
Tax reform bill could helpAttention Current and Future Property Owners!
Do you own property? Do you plan to buy property? If you answered yes to either of these then you should know the following information. I am pushing to overturn parts of Iowa Code Chapter 650. A house file was submitted but is still in committee and needs more property owners to push for a vote.
Why does this matter to you? This chapter allows your neighbor to legally take your property that you purchased and pay taxes on. They do not have to pay you for it. If they file to take it, you will have legal fees, court costs and other expenses the judge decides you should pay.
How does this work? It is called Boundary by Acquiescence. Your neighbor can claim your land up to a boundary they decide despite what a survey says or what is on the tax assessors website. The boundary can be marked by things such as a fence, a wall, a tree line, landscaping, posts at each end of the property line, or pretty much anything that makes it clear where the neighboring landowner believes the property line to be, even if much of the line must be imagined as opposed to being an actual physical line. They only have to prove they used it with out objection for 10 years. Use is determined by a judge. This can be walking on, mowing, planting, etc. The 10 years could be during a time before you purchased the property.
What can you do? First know where your property line is. If your neighbor has been walking on, mowing or using in anyway parts of your property then send a certified letter to your neighbor stating the land is yours. Then state either they can continue to use with your permission or they must stay off the property. Make sure you have proof of the letter. Also write or call your state representative and demand that they pass HF 596 to remove this law from the books.
We were very fortunate as my employer provides legal insurance so it did not cost us for legal fees. Without legal insurance the cost could easily be $30,000-$40,000+. Fighting the lawsuit was purely a financial decision for us as the land was pretty much useless. Even though we lost the land, we won financial as what we ended up paying was less than pretrial offers.
Some of you may have land that is valuable and losing it would make a difference. We can protect all land owners from future cases such as ours if more people demand change. This chapter was written in the 1890’s long before technology. Now you can look online at property lines in all counties in Iowa. There is no reason for confusion about the location of property lines.
It is time to strike chapter 650.6, 650.10 and 650.14 from the Iowa Code!
Write or call your State Representative!
Thank you,
Loretta Gronewold
Atalissa