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[quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by futuremodal [quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by Murphy Siding [quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by Limitedclear [quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by Murphy Siding [quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by futuremodal You notice there is nothing in that article about the utilities reneging on an upfront promise to provide connecting infrastructure. Nope, just the railroad. [/quote] Was that in the article? [/quote] Of course not, the article had nothing to do with utilities. Just FM trying to bend the discussion to his will... LC [/quote] I was thinking more along the line of the railroad "reneging on an upfrony promise to provide connecting infrastructure" That is nowhere in the article. I read it as, nobody asked the railroad beforehand. [/quote] From the subsequent article as posted by LC: "Don Willoughby, the city's business development coordinator, told the Journal Thursday, 'Baard's initial discussions with Union Pacific had led them to believe the only problem might be on rail charges.'" ....and.... "Baard officials have been talking to Union Pacific representatives throughout the planning stages on rate charges. Willoughby said those discussions took place with UP's rate division and not its industrial development division." Now, do you want to split hairs and state that since the initial arrangement was through UP's rate division and not UP's so-called "industrial development" division, that UP is exonerated in it's about-face on that initial agreement to provide service to the proposed plant? Paaaaleaz! Fact: UP did initially agree to provide service to this plant contingent on a rate agreement. The fact that you grant UP internal disfunctional deniability 'cause UP's left hand didn't know what it's right hand was doing is irrelevent. If I shoot you with my right hand, it ain't just my right hand that goes to jail, it's all of me, right? Why not expect that same level of embodied responsibility to a corporate entity? As for LC's take on your post, it is true that railroads embody some of the same characteristics of utilities e.g. the "natural" service area monopoly. As such, is it really that much of a stretch to suggest that the railroad should conform to the same general expectations of service as is ascribed to other de facto utilities? What is funniest about this sad saga is that, if indeed it was all predicated on a rate agreement, why didn't UP just include the upgrade cost in the upfront rate quote to begin with, instead of avering an agreement contingent on subsequent rate agreements? Why go with an agreement in principle beforehand, and then renege due to internal disfunctional denials? [/quote] The UP has never reneged on anything. There was never a deal inked in the first place. Getting a rate is simply that, learning what a certain shipment will cost. It is not a contract for carriage and it certainly has no weight as an industrial development agreement. Remember that all contracts affecting an interest such as an easement or an improvement agreement to be recorded in real property MUST be in writing to comply with the Statute of Frauds. I'm sure Baard has attorneys that represented them on this deal. They have done other deals. You are trying to create the impression that they wouldn't know. Sorry, no sale. UP couldn't breach a contract that did not exist. I find the argumernt that Baard which alredy has two other ethanol plants doesn't know that you need to make a deal and have agreements with the railroad setting forth the essential terms and conditions. Also note that Baard switched developers in midstream. Hmmm. Do ya think that maybe the original developer working for Baard was clueless?? Perhaps that is why Baard caught on and fired them perhaps?? How is negligence on Baard's part in hiring a incompetent developer the fault of UP??! ! It isn't... Further, as I have already pointed out, a RAILROAD IS NOT A UTILITY. You can say that it is all day, but the businesses are significantly different. In the competitive environment that the railroads have, customers often get rail only to leverage their trucking rates and ship little or nothing by rail. The railroads, even Class 1s, cannot afford seven figure investments that don't pay. They just won't do them no matter how much you villify them. LC
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