Investors wanting to drill for oil inside the City of Mount Vernon have filed a law suit against the city claiming more than $24 million in damages.
The Mount Vernon City Council met at noon Tuesday, Sept. 7 and immediately went into executive session. They met with city attorney Kerry Wooten of Mount Pleasant to discuss the pending litigation. The meeting concluded shortly after 1 p.m. Following the meeting, the council issued a statement that the city had instructed its attorney to file an answer to the group’s suit.
The 13 individuals and one company named as plaintiffs in the suit claim that the city has taken their right to use their property, or interest in the mineral rights they own, without compensation. The suit stems from an ordinance the city leaders adopted in 1980, which follows: “No person shall drill any well for oil, gas, sulphur or other liquid hydrocarbons or mine coal, lignite or ores inside the city.”
More than a dozen people who own surface rights to property near the proposed drill site voiced their opposition to the drilling “in our back yard.” See the Sept. 9 edition of the Mount Vernon Optic-Herald for more information.
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