Find out the latest in eminent domain news from around Texas.
Kinder Morgan’s Permian Highway Pipeline resumes full construction after disruption
Source: S&P Global
Kinder Morgan resumed full construction Sept. 2 on its Permian Highway Pipeline, the company said, a day after the discovery of a suspicious device left along the route of the natural gas project shut down a section of work in Texas.
The device, which Kinder Morgan has interchangeably referred to as a package, was removed after being discovered by pipeline contractors in Blanco County and was still being examined, the pipeline operator said in an e-mail Sept. 2.
Permian Basin natural gas pipeline clears legal hurdle, expected in service by 2021
Source: Carlsbad Current-Argus
A federal judge in West Texas ruled in favor of a natural gas pipeline that would connect Permian Basin extraction operations with Gulf Coast refinery markets as the Sierra Club sought to block the pipeline due to its perceived threat to the environment along the route.
Kinder Morgan’s $2 billion Permian Highway Pipeline would stretch about 430 miles from Waha, Texas in the Permian to the Gulf Coast via a 42-inch line.
Congressman Brady: Federal Ruling on Texas High Speed Rail Wrong; Fight not over
Source: Highlands Star – Crosby Courier
Congressman Kevin Brady (TX-08) released the following statement after the Surface Transportation Board released a new ruling on Texas Central Railroad’s (TCR) petition for exemption:
“While I strongly disagree with this decision, the good news is this doesn’t give TCR eminent domain authority to seize property without landowners consent — and finally forces TCR to publicly disclose their shaky financial projections to the Surface Transportation Board in any future bid to gain authority to construct the project.”
Kinder Morgan rerouting Permian Highway Pipeline around Blanco River
Source: KXAN
In an opinion piece published Wednesday in the Houston Chronicle, Kinder Morgan CEO Steven Kean said rerouting the controversial Permian Highway Pipeline Project around the Blanco River is “the best option.”
Kean said the company “deeply regrets” an incident where the pipeline’s drilling operation lost 36,000 of drilling fluid east of Blanco, Texas in late March. Kean insists the company acted responsibly following the accident and “started working to make it right with the affected community immediately after it occurred.”
McKinney council OKs use of eminent domain if needed on public parking project
Source: Community Impact Newspaper
McKinney City Council members approved a resolution Sept. 1 that determines it is a public necessity to acquire property for a public parking project by eminent domain.
The city is still in the process of negotiating with the owner of the property. Council agreed on Sept. 1 to grant staff the ability to begin eminent domain proceedings should that become necessary, Mayor George Fuller said.
