The road to demolishing the old Farmland factory just got a little bumpier, thanks to Farmland’s own insurance companies.

Friday, March 22, 2002

The road to demolishing the old Farmland factory just got a little bumpier, thanks to Farmland’s own insurance companies.

On Thursday, city officials received official word that attorneys for the eight insurance companies that carried insurance on the property will be seeking a temporary injunction. They’ll ask a judge to block any actions the city might take either to force Farmland to demolish the property or to demolish it themselves.

The insurance companies acted just a few days before the deadline for responding to the city’s demolition order. Farmland originally had 20 days to respond to the order, but only six days remained before the deadline as of Thursday.

The city plans to ask the court to refuse to allow the insurance companies to intervene, basing their defense on the statute that deals with forced demolitions.

&uot;The insurance companies have no standing; they have no right to intervene,&uot; said Paul Sparks, city manager. The statutes in question specifically list all the parties involved in demolition orders, and insurance companies are not included, he said.

&uot;They weren’t at the public hearing we held on the demolition. They shouldn’t have the right to intervene now,&uot; said David McPherson, city council member.

The attorneys for the insurance companies are basing their request for an injunction on a case from the 1930s, long before the current law was enacted, Sparks said.

The stakes for the insurance companies are high in this matter, and Sparks and other city officials were expecting them to do this.

&uot;They feel they should have a say because if the order for demolition goes forward, they would probably be put in the position of having to settle (with Farmland) at full fair value,&uot; said Sparks. &uot;If they lose this fight then they’ve lost the war.&uot; Farmland has been saying for months that negotiations with the companies are the main roadblock keeping them from making a decision on the future of their company in Albert Lea.

The insurance companies still believe that Farmland can rebuild on the old site, and doesn’t need to build a new plant. But city officials say that the building is too badly damaged for rebuilding – well over the 50 percent threshold needed to meet state guidelines on demolition orders. And structures that weren’t actually damaged in the fire are either contaminated at this point, or of no use without the parts that were destroyed or damaged.

&uot;Basically our position is that the demolition has to be done whether Farmland decides to rebuild or not,&uot; Sparks said.

The hearing on the injunction will be on Thursday, March 28, before Judge James Broberg in Freeborn County District Court.