PORT BUYS ACREAGE IN SETTLEMENT

CAPE GIRARDEAU -- The Southeast Missouri Regional Port Authority has purchased about 170 acres of land from West Lake Quarry that could spur port development, a port authority official said Saturday.

Allan Maki, executive director of the port authority, said the property was acquired Friday in an out-of-court settlement, ending a two-year effort by the port to purchase the land.

The port authority purchased the property for $350,000, or slightly more than $2,000 an acre, Maki said.

Under the agreement, West Lake also received $12,000 in accrued rent from the port authority.

Maki said the port authority had been leasing the acreage from West Lake under terms of a 1979 agreement.

The lease was for a period of 50 years and included two, 25-year renewal options. The result, said Maki, was that the port authority could have leased the land for 100 years.

But port authority officials felt that the authority needed to own the property for long-term development of the Mississippi River site, he said.

The property includes the dock and the south half of the harbor, situated near Gray's Point.

Leasing the property was a hindrance to the port's development. "We saw it as an impediment for successful economic development of the property," said Maki.

Under the lease agreement, the port authority could not enter into any subleases with industries without West Lake's approval.

The port authority filed a condemnation suit against West Lake last year after it was unsuccessful in efforts to purchase the land. West Lake subsequently declined to approve any leases with industries while the litigation was pending.

The port authority last year also filed for a declaratory judgment in Scott County Circuit Court in an effort to have the court clarify the lease agreement.

Maki said the out-of-court settlement puts an end to all the litigation.

"In January, we reached agreement in principle to settle the matter," said Maki.

The agreement, however, wasn't completely finalized until Friday. "It's probably 70 or 80 pages. We've been through about 15 drafts of it," said Maki.

Now that the port authority owns the land, it can lease, sell or otherwise manage the land as it chooses, said Maki. In addition, said Maki, the port authority won't have to pay property taxes as it did when it leased the land.

Maki said Midwest Agri-Chemico, a port tenant, has been planning to make a major capital investment at the port. But, he said, the company had been reluctant to proceed because of concern about the lease situation.

Girardeau Stevedores & Contractors Inc., the public terminal operator at the port, had also postponed any major capital investment at the port because of the lease situation.

Maki said the purchase of the property by the port authority will allow the two companies to proceed with their capital-investment plans.

With Friday's transaction, the port authority now owns approximately 400 acres. "Hopefully Monday, we will have options on another 100 acres," said Maki.

Some of the property will be used for right-of-way for the Nash Road extension and for right-of-way for a rail line to the port, Maki said.

"We anticipate that development will take place along the right-of-way corridors as well as at the port itself," he said.

"We regret the fact that West Lake and the port authority took such a long time to finally reach agreement," said Maki. But now that the settlement has been reached, Maki said the port authority and West Lake should once again be "good neighbors."