According to notices received by our office from INDOT:

“The Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) will hold a public hearing on Thursday, April 15, 2010 beginning at 5:00pm with an informal Open House Session, followed by the formal public hearing beginning at 6:00pm. The public hearing will be held in the auditorium at Terre Haute South Vigo High School, located at 3737 South 7th Street in Terre Haute.  The project includes the construction of a new four-lane, full access control roadway connecting US 41 southeast of Terre Haute to I-70 east of the city.  The new roadway will begin at a new interchange on US 41 near Bono Road and will proceed north east from US 41 towards I-70.  The project is approximately 6.2 miles in length and separated into the following four segments:  PHASE I from US 41 to Woodsmall Road; PHASE II from Woodsmall Road to northeast of Feree Road; PHASE III from northeast of Feree Road to east of Riley Road; and PHASE IV from east of Riley Road to I-70 interchange.  Construction of this proposed project may require approximately 190 acres of right-of-way with approximatley 19 displacements.  Construction is anticipated to begin 2011/2012 and would continue over the course of two construction years. ”

Attorneys from Sever Storey will be present to ask questions on behalf of its various clients.  If you are in attendance and wish to ask questions to a landowner’s attorney please feel free to introduce yourself.

I will follow up with notes from the meeting in tomorrow’s blog.

Phil Sever

According to local sources, the most predominate mineral in the local area is coal. Peabody owns most (if not all) of the rights to the coal in the local area. Peabody is the largest coal company in the country and owns the Frisco/Black Beauty mine near Oakland City.

Some individuals affected by the I 69 project have transferred their coal rights to Peabody directly. In these instances, Peabody usually takes a 10 year ownership right with a royalty share that is allocated to the landowner. The royalty is typically based off of the price of the coal extracted from the landowners property.

If a landowner has a royalty lease with Peabody there are two important questions that must be answered as part of the taking for the I 69 project. First, how will the taking affect my royalty income. Second, how will the taking affect access to coal deposits on my land. If either income or access is affected then landowners must seek compensation for their losses.

Our firm is in direct communication with Peabody and the State of Indiana regarding these issues on behalf of our clients. In addition, we are already mobilizing resources that will allow us to properly value coal rights of affected owners. We will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available.

If you have questions about how your mineral rights will be affected by the I69 project please call us for a free consultation at 888-318-3761 or visit us on the web at www.severstorey.com.

Phil