No mineral lease was signed at tonight’s packed BOC meeting, (although who actually called for the meeting remains a mystery). The board held an executive meeting leaving the crowd of more than one hundred waiting without explanation for almost an hour.
When the board opened the meeting, Nikki Whitty, convalescing attended via phone, they began with a list of revisions to the proposed lease that included a term reduction to five years for the primary lease with two three year options, or eleven years total. The original proposal was up to twenty years.
Commissioner Main wanted a minimum royalty amount equal to the lowest average annual yield per acre from timber harvests of $30,000 per acre.
Another change was to strike the right of assignment, wherein ORC could choose to assign the mineral lease to any other entity with equal financial capability or expertise.
Jerry Fish, lawyer for ORC, objected to all the recommended changes on various grounds which I will try to elaborate on tomorrow.
Unfortunately, I had to leave early, however, the meeting brought to the forefront, how one business interest might conflict with another when Hank Hickox, general manager for the Bandon Dunes, expressed concerns about the mining activities on the resort. Jon Barton, of FONSI and SCDC, was present and after penning a letter to the editor listing a $25,000 per acre payment to the county, learned no such provision was written into the lease. (He apparently hadn’t read the lease before endorsing it).
This may have been an awakening for some of the so called business leaders in the community to realize that not every industry is compatible with this area.
Stufflebean excused himself shortly after 5PM and the meeting continued with just Main and Whitty. Thankfully, no decision will be made on this lease before the new board is sworn in in January.
Curiously, Stufflebean made a point of mentioning more than once to more than one individual that he didn’t know who had called the meeting. Then when he had Whitty on the speaker phone, he began the meeting by saying Whitty had called for the meeting. This is strange because days earlier, Whitty advised one of The World reporters that she knew nothing about it.
One of the very interesting things that came out of the meeting yesterday, was the fact that ORC lender, Macquarie Bank is securing its debt not just with the real estate and improvements, but with the mineral leases. In other words, the public is providing the collateral for a private company.
So, is Macquarie requiring 200 or 300% collateral or is ORC borrowing operating funds in addition to the improvements and expecting the public to secure it. Every company in Oregon would like a deal like that.
Eagerly awaiting the full report of yesterday’s BOC meeting re ORC and SCDC. I’ll get more facts here that from Mr. Walworth. And, yes, ORC could “flip” their contracts with the county, Kimberly Clark, Weyerhauser, et al to a company with a similar financial condition – and it is well documented that you would not want your business to be in a similar finacial condition to Industrial Mainerals and ORC.
It was pointed out at the meeting the lease has no clause demanding it develop the leases. If I understand it correctly, ORC could just flip the lease to the highest bidder.
I am for cooking up a deal with ORC; and soon. You know that I read that lease; I submitted many pages of comments on the lease; and that lease – as written – sucks! Especially the section that implies that the citizens of Coos County have been misled again by this BOC. That jobs producing mining may not begin soon as the people have been told.