Legal & Courts  January 21, 2015

City of Longmont back in court with Butterball

LONGMONT — The city of Longmont is refuting claims by Butterball LLC that the city did not provide proper notice of public hearings concerning zoning changes for property it owned, but did not occupy, at 150 Main Ave. in Longmont.

Butterball is appealing Boulder County District Court judge Andrew Hartman’s ruling last year to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the North Carolina-based turkey processor seeking monetary damages from the city contending that rezoning the property from light industrial to mixed use adversely affected the company’s chances of finding a buyer.

Hartman dismissed the lawsuit after PFP Longmont Holdings LLC purchased the 27-acre site from Butterball last May for $4.46 million. In 2012, Butterball put the seven properties that make up the site on the market for $16.5 million, but was unable to make a deal at that price.

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PFP is in the process of redeveloping the property for apartments and retail uses.

In the appeal, Butterball, which in 2011 vacated the turkey processing plant, asserts that the city did not provide Butterball proper notice of rezoning hearings.

Last week, attorneys of the Denver-based law firm Hall & Evans, filed a response in the Colorado Court of Appeals on behalf of the city.

In the response, the city said it notified 200-plus property owners in the area, including Butterball, using an address on record with the Boulder County assessor’s office.

The city said that Butterball, in its appeal, said that its lack of attendance at such meetings should have “raised a red flag … similar to having mail returned as undeliverable.” Butterball said the notices should have been posted physically on its properties, and that the city should have called or emailed Butterball about the meetings.

The city explained in its response to the appeal that the city believed Butterball received the notices sent to the post office box address and had no reason to believe Butterball did not receive them. And that if it called Butterball, it would have had to call all property owners in rezoned area as a matter of fairness.

LONGMONT — The city of Longmont is refuting claims by Butterball LLC that the city did not provide proper notice of public hearings concerning zoning changes for property it owned, but did not occupy, at 150 Main Ave. in Longmont.

Butterball is appealing Boulder County District Court judge Andrew Hartman’s ruling last year to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the North Carolina-based turkey processor seeking monetary damages from the city contending that rezoning the property from light industrial to mixed use adversely affected the company’s chances of finding a buyer.

Hartman dismissed the lawsuit after PFP Longmont Holdings LLC purchased the 27-acre…

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