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Council approves pipeline easement and valve site grant to Eckerd Operating LLC, negotiator cites reduced costs
Summary
Council approved an agreement granting a pipeline easement and a 75-by-25-foot valve pad site to Eckerd Operating LLC on city property, with the city attorney reporting negotiated consideration and discussion of aesthetic screening.
The Newcastle City Council approved an agreement granting a pipeline right-of-way easement and a 75-by-25-foot valve site to Eckerd Operating LLC on city-owned property at the south end of the city, with the council accepting terms the city attorney said were negotiated to lower the city's cost.
City legal counsel reported that negotiations with Eckerd's representative produced a payment structure described in the meeting as a recording fee of $42.50 plus $4.75 per rod for the easement, with the easement not expected to exceed two rods. The pad site would be located on the southern edge of the city property, set back a considerable distance from Highway 62, staff said. The council discussed screening around the pad site: council members asked that an obstacle such as evergreen plantings or other natural screening be included, and the applicant's agent said the proposed location is already largely obscured by trees but that a small number of trees might need to be removed for the 25-by-25 pad and workspace.
Jeff Clark, identified in the meeting as the applicant's agent, said the project team was aware of the city's future plan for a city hall nearby and had placed the pad site as close to the property border as feasible. Clark said the company could work with the city on exact placement and aesthetics and that periodic access (approximately monthly or every few months) would be required for testing and monitoring of the valve site. He recommended landscaping such as evergreens or shrubs as a preferable screening solution to a wooden privacy fence.
Council members asked whether the screening would be maintained by the city or the company; the applicant's agent said the company would maintain fencing or screening if the council required it.
The motion to approve the amount of consideration and grant the easement passed on a council vote recorded during the meeting.
What the city approved: a grant of a pipeline right-of-way easement (negotiated payment structure reported in public meeting) and approval of a 75-by-25-foot valve site on city land; the council approved inclusion of screening per discussion and accepted the negotiated monetary terms as described by city counsel and the applicant's agent.
