Corps And WA Ports Threaten Colf Family Farm With Eminent Domain
Subject: Corps And WA Ports Threaten Colf Family Farm With Eminent Domain
Land Rights Network
American Land Rights Association
PO Box 400 - Battle Ground, WA 98604
Phone: 360-687-3087 - Fax: 360-687-2973
E-mail: alra@pacifier.com
Web Address: http://www.landrights.org
Legislative Office: 507 Seward Square SE - Washington, DC 20003
Corps And WA Ports Threaten Colf Family Farm With Eminent Domain
To e-mail recipients: This e-mail and its fax version went out to over
240,000 direct recipients Monday night. We will send another in a few days.
With forwarding, we expect it to hit over 1,000,000 households per e-mail.
American Land Rights has 600,000 e-mail addresses, 900,000 fax numbers and
over 2,000,000 names and addresses.
ALRA has successfully fought eminent domain and condemnation many times by
the Park Service, Forest Service, Fish and Wildlife Service and other
agencies. We saved 2,000 cabins on the Mississippi River from the Corps of
Engineers in 1988. ALRA will work as hard as possible to save the Colf
family from eminent domain.
For more background, please type into Google: Chuck Cushman, Charles S.
Cushman, American Land Rights Association, National Inholders Association or
League of Private Property Voters. Go to www.landrights.org to add
additional background. You can contact Chuck Cushman, ALRA Executive
Director, at (360) 687-3087.
Please forward this message as widely as possible.
Action Items below:
The Corps of Engineers is in the middle of a shipping channel dredging
project of 106 miles of the Columbia River from its mouth to the cities of
Portland, Oregon and Vancouver Washington.
As part of the project, the Corps must mitigate damage to wetlands caused by
the project. They have chosen to take 70% of what they need from one
family, the Colf Family of Woodland, Washington.
The Colf farming family is actively led by 91-year-old Margaret Colf.
Nancy Colf, Margaret's daughter, is head of the Family farming operation.
The Colf Family has been farming the area since 1870. They don't want to
sell. They are farmers. They want to keep the land in agriculture. The
Colf family is not now and never has been a willing seller. They are now
and have continued to talk to the Corps of Engineers to discuss various
options and solutions because the Corps has placed a gun at their head by
threatening eminent domain.
The Colf Family has been through nine years of hell dealing with the Corps
of Engineers. The Corps is now threatening eminent domain using the
Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) to carry out their
eminent domain threat on behalf of the Ports of Vancouver, Woodland,
Longview and Kalama along the Columbia River. The Ports would eventually
end up with ownership of the Colf Farm land.
The Corps has identified eight other sites along the Columbia that are
appropriate for this wetlands mitigation. There are lots of willing sellers
of land that can be used for wetlands mitigation along the 106 mile affected
area of the Columbia River. That does not seem to matter to the Corps.
They have targeted the Colf Family and plan to take their land and destroy
an active and historic family farm.
The Colf Family has repeatedly offered compromise and alternate solutions.
Often they have not been able to get the Corp or port officials to even talk
to them.
It is ironic that the Ports have lots of land that could be used for
mitigation purposes. Those lands don't seem to count. They would rather
destroy farmers.
Agriculture is important to America. Small farms are disappearing every
year. It is easy to see that the Corps of Engineers is part of the reason
for this loss. They have been heavy handed and threatening in the process.
It is important that every farmer and agriculture advocate stand up and
fight for proud farm families like the Colf. It is only by farmers standing
together and working in unison to protect farming and family agriculture
operations is there a chance to save and protect productive family farms.
Action Items -- What You Can Do:
-----1. Please tape a copy of this e-mail to the front of your
refrigerator door so you can make at least three or four calls a day, and
send three e-mails or faxes a day.
This is your refrigerator to do list.
-----2. Call your Congressman and both Senators and urge them to reduce the
budget of the Corps of Engineers. They'll have a hard time using eminent
domain if they don't have the money. You may call any Congressman at (202)
225-3121. Call any Senator at (202) 224-3121.
-----3. Call, fax and e-mail the local Congressman, Brian Baird (D-WA).
Phone: (202) 225-3536. Fax: (202) 225-3478. E-mail:Andrew Dohrmann -
andrew.dohrmann@mail.house.gov and Hilary Cain - hilary.cain@mail.house.gov.
Vancouver Office: Phone: (360) 695-6292. Fax: (360) 695-6197. E-mail:
kelly.love@mail.house.gov.
Your message to Rep. Baird and Senators Murray and Cantwell below is that
Congress should deny the Corps and local ports any funds to use eminent
domain against the Colf Family Farm. All Federal funding for any of the
Ports should be shut off. The entire Corps budget should be examined
closely for other abuses like this one that is taking place against the
Colfs.
ALRA is informed by knowledgeable people that the Corps is doing the same
thing to many other families that they are doing to the Colf Family. It is
time the Corps and its officials got the credit they deserve. The Corps of
Engineers needs to become good neighbors or get their funding cut or
eliminated as much as possible.
-----American Land Rights is interested in hearing back from anyone who
knows of other examples of abuses and threats by the Corps against other
farmers and landowners. ALRA wants to hear about any eminent domain actions
by the Corps. We just need a name and location of the victims. A phone,
fax and e-mail would also help. The more we publicize these horror stories,
the more difficult it will be for the Corps to get money from Congress.
-----4. Call and e-mail Dino Rossi, Candidate for Washington State
Governor. Ask for Renee Maher, Coalitions Director. (425)498-2008.
E-mail: renee@dinorossi.com. Urge Rossi to make saving farms, agriculture
and the Colf Family Farm an issue in the coming campaign.
-----5. Call, fax and e-mail the following officials of the Corps of
Engineers in Washington, DC.
John Paul Woodley, Assistant Secretary of the Army (703) 697-8986 Fax:
(703)- 697- 7401
Kathleen McGlynn (703) 697-7401 - Fax: (703) 697-7401 - E-mail:
kathleen.mcglynn@hqda.army.mil
Elwyn Darden (703) 697-8987 - E-mail: elwyn.darden@hqda.army.mil
George Dunlop (Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary) (703) 675-1370 - Fax:
(703) 697-7401 - E-mail: george.dunlop@hqda.army.mil.
Kevin Edwards (703) 697-3365 - Fax: 703 697-7401 - E-mail:
Kevin.Edwards@hqda.army.mil
-----6. Corps of Engineers - Portland area, Oregon and Washington. Laura
Hicks, Project manager. Phone: (503) 808-4703. E-mail:
laura.l.hicks@usace.army.mil. Col. Thomas O'Donovan is in charge of the
Corps in the Portland area and has been transferred. Hicks bears most of
the responsibility for the abuses against the Colf family. She has been
involved in the Columbian Dredging Project from the beginning.
-----American Land Rights will alert people everywhere Col. O'Donovan goes
in the USA about the abuse of the Colf family. Corps officials should not
be able to abuse the rights of landowners and simply walk away. They need
to get full credit for their actions. They need to be held responsible for
their intimidation and threatening tactics. E-mail:
Thomas.E.O'Donovan@usace.army.mil.
-----7. Call, fax and e-mail U. S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA). Phone:
(202) 224-2621. Fax: (202) 224-0238. E-mail:
carrie_desmond@murray.senate.gov. Vancouver office: Thersea Wagner -
thersea_wagner@murray.senate.gov. Does Senator Murray support farmers and
agriculture? She can answer by helping save the Colf family.
-----8. Call, fax and e-mail U. S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA). Phone
(202) 224-3441. Fax: (202) 228-0514. E-mail:
katie_kirking@cantwell.senate.gov. Vancouver Washington office: Bob
Dingethal - (360) 696-7838, bob_dingethal@cantwell.senate.gov Does Senator
Cantwell support farmers and agriculture? She too has a chance to show her
support for agriculture and family farms by stopping the Corps and ports
from using eminent domain on the Colf Family.
-----9. Call the key officials listed below with the following Columbia
River ports. They are going to use eminent domain against the Colf Family.
They need to hear from you and thousands of other people that they should
not abuse eminent domain against the Colf Farm family. They should only
buy from the many sellers who are willing to sell.
American Land Rights will be sending you more information about the ports,
their commissioners, their election districts and what you can do to keep
them from abusing eminent domain with the Colf family. We'll likely send
letters to all voters residing in the port districts to get them to stop the
abuse of eminent domain by the ports.
Port of Portland:
Even though the Port of Portland will not be involved in the eminent domain
at this time, the key representative for all the Columbia River Ports in
dealing with the Corps of Engineers and the Columbia River dredging project
is Dianne Perry from the Port of Portland. (503) 944-7226 -
dianne.perry@portofportland.com. She should get deluged with calls and
e-mails.
Call, fax and e-mail all the ports telling them no eminent domain, period.
Get your friends to call also to help save the Colf family.
Port of Vancouver (USA):
Executive Director: Larry Paulson - (360) 693-3611 Fax: (360) 735-1565 --
E-mail: lpaulson@portvanusa.com
Commissioner Brian Wolfe: bwolfe@bhw-law.com
Port of Woodland:
Executive Director: Erica Rainford - (360) 225-6555 Fax: (360) 225-6556 --
portofwoodland@worldaccessnet.com
Port of Longview:
Executive Director: Ken O'Hallaren - (360) 425-3305 Fax: (360) 425-8650 --
kohollaren@portoflongview.com
Public Affairs: Ashley Opsahl-Scibelli -- (360) 425-3305 -
aopsahl-scibelli@portoflongview.com
Port of Kalama:
Phone: (360) 673-5017 - Fax: (360) 673-5017 - E-mail: pok@portofkalama.com
Executive Director - Lanny Cawley - lannycawley@portofkalama.com
Manager of Planning - Mark Wilson - markwilson@portofkalama.com
-----The Ports in Washington have an agreement with the Washington State
Department of Transportation (WSDOT) under Governor Chris Gregoire to carry
out eminent domain on behalf of the Corps of Engineers and the Ports. You
need to call and e-mail WSDOT at:
Paula Hammond, Department of Transportation, (360) 705-7054 -
hqcustomerservice@wsdot.wa.gov
-----10. You should also call Washington State Governor Chris Gregoire
through the following staff people: (It appears from the agreement between
the ports and the State Department of Transportation that she supports the
use of eminent domain to take private farmland. She has done little to head
off the eminent domain of the Colf Farm.)
Chief of Staff: (360) 902-4111 cindy.zehnder@gov.wa.gov
Deputy Chief of Staff: (360) 902-0486 joyce.turner@gov.wa.gov
Governor Gregoire has been told in the past that if the acquisition of the
Colf Family Farm does not continue, it could stop the entire dredging
project on the Columbia. That is complete nonsense. There are willing
sellers all along the river. The Colf Family will fight every inch of the
way in court and in Congress. The Corps and the ports will only delay the
dredging project if they insist on destroying the historic Colf Family Farm.
The key to success in fighting for private property rights and against an
agency like the Corps of Engineers who is mistreating people is for all
farmers, ranchers and people who care about agriculture to work together.
Teamwork.
By you making a few phone calls now, sending a few faxes and e-mails, you
create the critical mass to cause Congress to consider forcing the Corps of
Engineers to become better neighbors. You may get Congress to take away
their funding and limit their ability to use eminent domain and cause
trouble. So your calls really count.
This is your chance to send the Corps of Engineers the message that the days
of beating up and threatening farmers and landowners is coming to a close.
And you can help make it happen.
Your help is greatly appreciated.
Chuck Cushman
Executive Director
American Land Rights Association
(360) 687-3087
ccushman@landrights.com
-----Background:
The Colf Family has farmed in the Woodland, Washington area since 1870. The
matriarch of the family, Margaret Colf Hepola, is 91 years old and still
active in the Colf Family Farm. The Colf Family owned land and has
continued to add more to continue farming. They are active members of the
Woodland and Vancouver(USA) area communities. They have never sold any
farmland.
Another Challenge
By Margaret Colf Hepola
April 1, 2008
During my nine decades on this earth challenges do not seem as shocking as
they pass through the years ---especially the latter ones.
The challenge with the Columbia River Channel Deepening Project with the
taking of our farmlands has lasted for nine years. That is quite a long
time to be involved in a situation that cannot be settled and seems so
unfair. Your faith in your country is somewhat shaken with the loss of
property rights which is included in our Constitutional Rights.
Two days from now on April 3, 2008, we will know the decision by the Army
Corps of Engineers or if they are considering studying the problem more and
will tell us later. We have studied this acquisition of land for mitigation
very thoroughly for several months. We feel we have been very fair on the
proposal we will present.
At this time, our family will provide over 70% of the land needed for the
whole Columbia River Dredging. We purchased this land to farm and love the
islands in the river. We have family and historical ties with Martin Island
which is part of the land to be taken.
This situation has been very upsetting to me as it reminds me of the unhappy
years as a small child crying myself to sleep fearing my birthplace would be
covered with water so that a hydro-electric dam could be built.
This threat started when I was five and my home was finally covered with
water when I reached the age of 13. I did know why this had to be as it
would provide electricity to the northwest for homes and industry.
But in this proposed "taking" of land now, I cannot understand the reasoning
of such a move. There is land at other places with owners willing to sell
and it is not productive farm land. And why is so much land taken in one
area and from one family?
I have read and been told of how land is taken from people under the guise
of environment. We are not the first ones to be treated in this manner. We
can survive the taking of this land but I fear the future of this country.
I have seen so many changes in the way our government has handled
situations.
The farmers and other landowners are the ones that realize how our rights
are being taken from us. Another change in the population is the lack of
taking part in our life around us and trying to make the world a better
place to live. So many citizens do not use the privilege of voting which is
a wonderful right given to us in this democracy.
Our lives are so more complex now than in past years. We have so many more
comforts in life than the pioneers before us. Have we had too much in these
past three or four generations? We will find out soon after we face the
Colonel from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Thursday - we already have
been told by a "little bird" they have made a statement they will
"steam-roll over the top" of us.
-----Editors Note: Col. Thomas O'Donovan, Portland office commander of the
Corps of Engineers in Portland said to the Colfs that the Corps and the
ports would begin eminent domain proceedings while they continued to
negotiate. Some negotiations.
Your immediate action is vital to stopping the ports and the Corps from
carrying out their eminent domain against the Colf Family.
If you wish to unsubscribe, reply to this e-mail with "unsubscribe" in the
subject line. If you know of others who would like to receive these alerts,
reply with their e-mail addresses.
Please forward this message as widely as possible. If each recipient
forwards this message to at least five other people, we'll reach over
2,000,000 recipients. So please take the time to forward this message.
The Corps of Engineers has been threatening family farmers and other
landowners for years across the country. They must be stopped. Congress
must force them to become good neighbors.
They cannot be allowed to simply run over our American freedoms on a regular
basis as they are currently doing.
Please make your calls, send your faxes and e-mails.
Land Rights Network
American Land Rights Association
PO Box 400 - Battle Ground, WA 98604
Phone: 360-687-3087 - Fax: 360-687-2973
E-mail: alra@pacifier.com
Web Address: http://www.landrights.org
Legislative Office: 507 Seward Square SE - Washington, DC 20003
Corps And WA Ports Threaten Colf Family Farm With Eminent Domain
To e-mail recipients: This e-mail and its fax version went out to over
240,000 direct recipients Monday night. We will send another in a few days.
With forwarding, we expect it to hit over 1,000,000 households per e-mail.
American Land Rights has 600,000 e-mail addresses, 900,000 fax numbers and
over 2,000,000 names and addresses.
ALRA has successfully fought eminent domain and condemnation many times by
the Park Service, Forest Service, Fish and Wildlife Service and other
agencies. We saved 2,000 cabins on the Mississippi River from the Corps of
Engineers in 1988. ALRA will work as hard as possible to save the Colf
family from eminent domain.
For more background, please type into Google: Chuck Cushman, Charles S.
Cushman, American Land Rights Association, National Inholders Association or
League of Private Property Voters. Go to www.landrights.org to add
additional background. You can contact Chuck Cushman, ALRA Executive
Director, at (360) 687-3087.
Please forward this message as widely as possible.
Action Items below:
The Corps of Engineers is in the middle of a shipping channel dredging
project of 106 miles of the Columbia River from its mouth to the cities of
Portland, Oregon and Vancouver Washington.
As part of the project, the Corps must mitigate damage to wetlands caused by
the project. They have chosen to take 70% of what they need from one
family, the Colf Family of Woodland, Washington.
The Colf farming family is actively led by 91-year-old Margaret Colf.
Nancy Colf, Margaret's daughter, is head of the Family farming operation.
The Colf Family has been farming the area since 1870. They don't want to
sell. They are farmers. They want to keep the land in agriculture. The
Colf family is not now and never has been a willing seller. They are now
and have continued to talk to the Corps of Engineers to discuss various
options and solutions because the Corps has placed a gun at their head by
threatening eminent domain.
The Colf Family has been through nine years of hell dealing with the Corps
of Engineers. The Corps is now threatening eminent domain using the
Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) to carry out their
eminent domain threat on behalf of the Ports of Vancouver, Woodland,
Longview and Kalama along the Columbia River. The Ports would eventually
end up with ownership of the Colf Farm land.
The Corps has identified eight other sites along the Columbia that are
appropriate for this wetlands mitigation. There are lots of willing sellers
of land that can be used for wetlands mitigation along the 106 mile affected
area of the Columbia River. That does not seem to matter to the Corps.
They have targeted the Colf Family and plan to take their land and destroy
an active and historic family farm.
The Colf Family has repeatedly offered compromise and alternate solutions.
Often they have not been able to get the Corp or port officials to even talk
to them.
It is ironic that the Ports have lots of land that could be used for
mitigation purposes. Those lands don't seem to count. They would rather
destroy farmers.
Agriculture is important to America. Small farms are disappearing every
year. It is easy to see that the Corps of Engineers is part of the reason
for this loss. They have been heavy handed and threatening in the process.
It is important that every farmer and agriculture advocate stand up and
fight for proud farm families like the Colf. It is only by farmers standing
together and working in unison to protect farming and family agriculture
operations is there a chance to save and protect productive family farms.
Action Items -- What You Can Do:
-----1. Please tape a copy of this e-mail to the front of your
refrigerator door so you can make at least three or four calls a day, and
send three e-mails or faxes a day.
This is your refrigerator to do list.
-----2. Call your Congressman and both Senators and urge them to reduce the
budget of the Corps of Engineers. They'll have a hard time using eminent
domain if they don't have the money. You may call any Congressman at (202)
225-3121. Call any Senator at (202) 224-3121.
-----3. Call, fax and e-mail the local Congressman, Brian Baird (D-WA).
Phone: (202) 225-3536. Fax: (202) 225-3478. E-mail:Andrew Dohrmann -
andrew.dohrmann@mail.house.gov and Hilary Cain - hilary.cain@mail.house.gov.
Vancouver Office: Phone: (360) 695-6292. Fax: (360) 695-6197. E-mail:
kelly.love@mail.house.gov.
Your message to Rep. Baird and Senators Murray and Cantwell below is that
Congress should deny the Corps and local ports any funds to use eminent
domain against the Colf Family Farm. All Federal funding for any of the
Ports should be shut off. The entire Corps budget should be examined
closely for other abuses like this one that is taking place against the
Colfs.
ALRA is informed by knowledgeable people that the Corps is doing the same
thing to many other families that they are doing to the Colf Family. It is
time the Corps and its officials got the credit they deserve. The Corps of
Engineers needs to become good neighbors or get their funding cut or
eliminated as much as possible.
-----American Land Rights is interested in hearing back from anyone who
knows of other examples of abuses and threats by the Corps against other
farmers and landowners. ALRA wants to hear about any eminent domain actions
by the Corps. We just need a name and location of the victims. A phone,
fax and e-mail would also help. The more we publicize these horror stories,
the more difficult it will be for the Corps to get money from Congress.
-----4. Call and e-mail Dino Rossi, Candidate for Washington State
Governor. Ask for Renee Maher, Coalitions Director. (425)498-2008.
E-mail: renee@dinorossi.com. Urge Rossi to make saving farms, agriculture
and the Colf Family Farm an issue in the coming campaign.
-----5. Call, fax and e-mail the following officials of the Corps of
Engineers in Washington, DC.
John Paul Woodley, Assistant Secretary of the Army (703) 697-8986 Fax:
(703)- 697- 7401
Kathleen McGlynn (703) 697-7401 - Fax: (703) 697-7401 - E-mail:
kathleen.mcglynn@hqda.army.mil
Elwyn Darden (703) 697-8987 - E-mail: elwyn.darden@hqda.army.mil
George Dunlop (Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary) (703) 675-1370 - Fax:
(703) 697-7401 - E-mail: george.dunlop@hqda.army.mil.
Kevin Edwards (703) 697-3365 - Fax: 703 697-7401 - E-mail:
Kevin.Edwards@hqda.army.mil
-----6. Corps of Engineers - Portland area, Oregon and Washington. Laura
Hicks, Project manager. Phone: (503) 808-4703. E-mail:
laura.l.hicks@usace.army.mil. Col. Thomas O'Donovan is in charge of the
Corps in the Portland area and has been transferred. Hicks bears most of
the responsibility for the abuses against the Colf family. She has been
involved in the Columbian Dredging Project from the beginning.
-----American Land Rights will alert people everywhere Col. O'Donovan goes
in the USA about the abuse of the Colf family. Corps officials should not
be able to abuse the rights of landowners and simply walk away. They need
to get full credit for their actions. They need to be held responsible for
their intimidation and threatening tactics. E-mail:
Thomas.E.O'Donovan@usace.army.mil.
-----7. Call, fax and e-mail U. S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA). Phone:
(202) 224-2621. Fax: (202) 224-0238. E-mail:
carrie_desmond@murray.senate.gov. Vancouver office: Thersea Wagner -
thersea_wagner@murray.senate.gov. Does Senator Murray support farmers and
agriculture? She can answer by helping save the Colf family.
-----8. Call, fax and e-mail U. S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA). Phone
(202) 224-3441. Fax: (202) 228-0514. E-mail:
katie_kirking@cantwell.senate.gov. Vancouver Washington office: Bob
Dingethal - (360) 696-7838, bob_dingethal@cantwell.senate.gov Does Senator
Cantwell support farmers and agriculture? She too has a chance to show her
support for agriculture and family farms by stopping the Corps and ports
from using eminent domain on the Colf Family.
-----9. Call the key officials listed below with the following Columbia
River ports. They are going to use eminent domain against the Colf Family.
They need to hear from you and thousands of other people that they should
not abuse eminent domain against the Colf Farm family. They should only
buy from the many sellers who are willing to sell.
American Land Rights will be sending you more information about the ports,
their commissioners, their election districts and what you can do to keep
them from abusing eminent domain with the Colf family. We'll likely send
letters to all voters residing in the port districts to get them to stop the
abuse of eminent domain by the ports.
Port of Portland:
Even though the Port of Portland will not be involved in the eminent domain
at this time, the key representative for all the Columbia River Ports in
dealing with the Corps of Engineers and the Columbia River dredging project
is Dianne Perry from the Port of Portland. (503) 944-7226 -
dianne.perry@portofportland.com. She should get deluged with calls and
e-mails.
Call, fax and e-mail all the ports telling them no eminent domain, period.
Get your friends to call also to help save the Colf family.
Port of Vancouver (USA):
Executive Director: Larry Paulson - (360) 693-3611 Fax: (360) 735-1565 --
E-mail: lpaulson@portvanusa.com
Commissioner Brian Wolfe: bwolfe@bhw-law.com
Port of Woodland:
Executive Director: Erica Rainford - (360) 225-6555 Fax: (360) 225-6556 --
portofwoodland@worldaccessnet.com
Port of Longview:
Executive Director: Ken O'Hallaren - (360) 425-3305 Fax: (360) 425-8650 --
kohollaren@portoflongview.com
Public Affairs: Ashley Opsahl-Scibelli -- (360) 425-3305 -
aopsahl-scibelli@portoflongview.com
Port of Kalama:
Phone: (360) 673-5017 - Fax: (360) 673-5017 - E-mail: pok@portofkalama.com
Executive Director - Lanny Cawley - lannycawley@portofkalama.com
Manager of Planning - Mark Wilson - markwilson@portofkalama.com
-----The Ports in Washington have an agreement with the Washington State
Department of Transportation (WSDOT) under Governor Chris Gregoire to carry
out eminent domain on behalf of the Corps of Engineers and the Ports. You
need to call and e-mail WSDOT at:
Paula Hammond, Department of Transportation, (360) 705-7054 -
hqcustomerservice@wsdot.wa.gov
-----10. You should also call Washington State Governor Chris Gregoire
through the following staff people: (It appears from the agreement between
the ports and the State Department of Transportation that she supports the
use of eminent domain to take private farmland. She has done little to head
off the eminent domain of the Colf Farm.)
Chief of Staff: (360) 902-4111 cindy.zehnder@gov.wa.gov
Deputy Chief of Staff: (360) 902-0486 joyce.turner@gov.wa.gov
Governor Gregoire has been told in the past that if the acquisition of the
Colf Family Farm does not continue, it could stop the entire dredging
project on the Columbia. That is complete nonsense. There are willing
sellers all along the river. The Colf Family will fight every inch of the
way in court and in Congress. The Corps and the ports will only delay the
dredging project if they insist on destroying the historic Colf Family Farm.
The key to success in fighting for private property rights and against an
agency like the Corps of Engineers who is mistreating people is for all
farmers, ranchers and people who care about agriculture to work together.
Teamwork.
By you making a few phone calls now, sending a few faxes and e-mails, you
create the critical mass to cause Congress to consider forcing the Corps of
Engineers to become better neighbors. You may get Congress to take away
their funding and limit their ability to use eminent domain and cause
trouble. So your calls really count.
This is your chance to send the Corps of Engineers the message that the days
of beating up and threatening farmers and landowners is coming to a close.
And you can help make it happen.
Your help is greatly appreciated.
Chuck Cushman
Executive Director
American Land Rights Association
(360) 687-3087
ccushman@landrights.com
-----Background:
The Colf Family has farmed in the Woodland, Washington area since 1870. The
matriarch of the family, Margaret Colf Hepola, is 91 years old and still
active in the Colf Family Farm. The Colf Family owned land and has
continued to add more to continue farming. They are active members of the
Woodland and Vancouver(USA) area communities. They have never sold any
farmland.
Another Challenge
By Margaret Colf Hepola
April 1, 2008
During my nine decades on this earth challenges do not seem as shocking as
they pass through the years ---especially the latter ones.
The challenge with the Columbia River Channel Deepening Project with the
taking of our farmlands has lasted for nine years. That is quite a long
time to be involved in a situation that cannot be settled and seems so
unfair. Your faith in your country is somewhat shaken with the loss of
property rights which is included in our Constitutional Rights.
Two days from now on April 3, 2008, we will know the decision by the Army
Corps of Engineers or if they are considering studying the problem more and
will tell us later. We have studied this acquisition of land for mitigation
very thoroughly for several months. We feel we have been very fair on the
proposal we will present.
At this time, our family will provide over 70% of the land needed for the
whole Columbia River Dredging. We purchased this land to farm and love the
islands in the river. We have family and historical ties with Martin Island
which is part of the land to be taken.
This situation has been very upsetting to me as it reminds me of the unhappy
years as a small child crying myself to sleep fearing my birthplace would be
covered with water so that a hydro-electric dam could be built.
This threat started when I was five and my home was finally covered with
water when I reached the age of 13. I did know why this had to be as it
would provide electricity to the northwest for homes and industry.
But in this proposed "taking" of land now, I cannot understand the reasoning
of such a move. There is land at other places with owners willing to sell
and it is not productive farm land. And why is so much land taken in one
area and from one family?
I have read and been told of how land is taken from people under the guise
of environment. We are not the first ones to be treated in this manner. We
can survive the taking of this land but I fear the future of this country.
I have seen so many changes in the way our government has handled
situations.
The farmers and other landowners are the ones that realize how our rights
are being taken from us. Another change in the population is the lack of
taking part in our life around us and trying to make the world a better
place to live. So many citizens do not use the privilege of voting which is
a wonderful right given to us in this democracy.
Our lives are so more complex now than in past years. We have so many more
comforts in life than the pioneers before us. Have we had too much in these
past three or four generations? We will find out soon after we face the
Colonel from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Thursday - we already have
been told by a "little bird" they have made a statement they will
"steam-roll over the top" of us.
-----Editors Note: Col. Thomas O'Donovan, Portland office commander of the
Corps of Engineers in Portland said to the Colfs that the Corps and the
ports would begin eminent domain proceedings while they continued to
negotiate. Some negotiations.
Your immediate action is vital to stopping the ports and the Corps from
carrying out their eminent domain against the Colf Family.
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The Corps of Engineers has been threatening family farmers and other
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must force them to become good neighbors.
They cannot be allowed to simply run over our American freedoms on a regular
basis as they are currently doing.
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