I am venting!!

[shadylady]

I need to vent.I also wanted to tell ya'll about what we are going through and hear what you think. Hopefully, you have read some of my other posts about finding my dream house on a little lake in SC...but we can't do much out there until after our court case.....I guess now I have your attention. Hubby and I built our really nice home on 5 acres with a creek along the back of the property. We have raised 2 sons here and decided to downsize. We spent 2-3 months updating and then put our home on the market in May 2 YEARS AGO....it had been on the market for 3 weeks when DUKE ENERGY came and knocked on our door and told us that they were going to put 100 ft tall transmission lines in our back yard. They plan to cut a swath out of our woods that is 100 ft wide and completely cuts our lot in half. To get to the creek, we will have to walk under 14 transmission wires. This area is about 30 yards from our home. They offered us $30,000. Our home was appraised at 400,000. and we refused their offer. No one will buy our house for 370,000 when they can buy anywhere else and not have power lines in their backyard. Duke says that they are only damaging less than an acre of our property, not considering what it is doing to our home's value. Everytime we have someone interested in our home and then we tell them about Duke Energy, they walk......Then last August, a family looked at our home and loved it. We told them about the power lines and they said that they did not care. They loved our home so much and they felt that it was an opportunity to get a relly nice home for under appraised value. They want to buy it for $275,000....which means that we want Duke to setle with us for $125,000. The eminent domain laws in SC are very clear. We should be left in the same financial position as if we were never approached. Duke has now filed eminent domain papers with the courts to condemn our property. That was last Nov. and we are still here. We have had to hire an attorney, and also get another appraisal of our property for $1500 (this appraiser specializes in caes like this) and who knows what else. We have demanded a jury trial, but have been told that Duke does not like to go to trial so they will probably settle...we just want this to be over! we have put our lives on hold for 2 years.

[ChapterTwo]

Shadylady...my heart goes out to you! It's getting so, that people don't have any rights any more. :mad:

I wish I was in the legal field and could give you some worthy insight, but I'm not. What does your attorney say about the whole thing?

Is there a local paper to whom you can write an editorial, and call attention to the situation? Otherwise it's like you are David, up against Goliath.

Please keep us posted...and I'll keep you in my thoughts and prayers. Good Luck!

[mac78]

I am so sorry you are having to deal with that. Things like this simply arn't fair or right. I hope you have a good lawyer and things get settled soon for you.

[Gigi]

OMG- You have EVERY right to vent. You put your heart and soul into your home and property-raise your sons- and bam...this happens.

My (correction- my cousin), in Vermont has 200 acres; in which he allowed a VERIZON tower to be placed at the top of his mountain area----for about 40,000 a year!

Yell out to the TV stations, the newspapers, etc... I'm sure you'll get a good lawyer, etc...

Umm....tell Duke you'll allow them to be on the property for 30,000 a year-payable to you every July 1st....

Glad you came hear to vent, I would be heart broken.

[RoseMary]

I am so sorry you are going through this! As ChapterTwo says, it seems we don't have any rights anymore and I think we are slowly losing what is left of them.

I think that writing the paper and contacting the television stations is a great idea. Let us know how it goes.

[Lisa S]

I can handle all kinds of things, but an injustice like this makes me nuts. My blood is boiling for you. I'll keep my fingers crossed that you get the best possible outcome.

[shadylady]

It is still ahrd for me to understand how this can happen to anyone. We put everything into this house and the home is in THE school zone to be in. We wish Duke would go ahead and take us to court. I feel like anyone on the jury could put themselves in our position. The Man across the street is fighting them also. He has 2 million in his home and land (100 acres). Duke is coming down the side odf their house right next to a pond they built and actually tearing out part of his custom iron and brick fence! They offered them 43 thousand. and the transmission lines are cutting his property in half.

[ChapterTwo]

In our area, the local news stations have segments that help people in all sorts of situations...One show is called, "Help me, Howard"...you get the idea. Do you have anything like that where you live? I think that I would want as many people as possible to know about this injustice.

I don't know if the Amercan Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) would help in a case like this, but I'd contact them too. If they can't help, then ask them if they have any suggestions as to who can. Heck, I'd contact anyone and everyone who would listen to me. This is SO wrong.

[shadylady]

An update...sort of...Duke Energy's lawyer called our lawyer yesterday and they want to start arbritration in June. This has been going on for 2 years. Got served in November with eminent domain papers.....then nothing since then until yesterday. We hope this is good that they now want to settle this thing. I think they are doing this now because our school district has plans to buy 35 acres up the street and build an elementary school. People on the street are upset that there may be a school AND a power service center......they don't think that high power transmission lines and school children go together. There have been several articles in the paper about it...a spokesperson for Duke said that you get more harm from your TV than these transmission lines and that places like hospitals and some subdivisions like to be near these power centers....that is news to me?? I've never heard of subdivisions WANTING to be near 100 ft power poles!

[ChapterTwo]

I was thinking about your situation the other day and wondered what was happening.

I will cross my fingers and hope that Duke does settle this whole thing. You've been hanging on for too long now.

Re Duke saying the subdivisions want to be near the power centers...these big companies will say ANYTHING just to hear themselves talk, won't they? Such ridiculous rubbish...

I wish you good luck with all of this, and please keep us posted.

[cheapdiva]

I agree with everyone - shout it out to the press, tv and radio news programs. Start a petition drive - go to Walmart or Target, find out if you can stand at the edge of a driveway (so you aren't in front of the store - which they won't allow) or across the street with a BIG sign "Electric Company offers 10% of house value to build towers - this can happen to YOU - PLEASE help!" Then have a statement paper with bullet points as to what you have been going through! Keep it simple and clear. At the bottom do a brief paragraph of what this has done to your family - regular people will empathize.

I'd be ready to do something drastic to these folks!

[shadylady]

Another update...Mediation is set for June 24th. Met with our lawyer this past week and he had received another email from Duke's lawyer about mediation and if we were interested. If we were not interested in settling then they wanted to take depositions in June and have a NON JURY TRIAL on Aug.3rd. Like we would want a non jury trial! He (the lawyer) sent an email to the judge and was requesting to fast track this thing...we have been asking to fast track this for 2 years now. Our lawyer sent an email to the judge and explained what had been going on. It does help when we know the judge personally (though he won't be the judge in the case)....anyway we are going in there with guns blazing! Had another appraisal started yesterday to show the damage done to our property value now that all the trees will be gone....to a tune of $2000. It absolutely kills me that we have to pay for all of this. It's like giving them equity in our house. Anyway we do see light at the end of the tunnel.

[RoseMary]

I'm so glad that things are finally progressing for you. Yes, you definitely want a jury trial! Please keep us updated.

[LindaLK]

Good Afternoon Everyone, :)

Shady Lady, this is just awful. I have heard of this happening to people with lots of acreage as well. These farms have been in their families for years and years. We had this happen in CT not too long ago. A big corporation came in and wanted to purchase several homes, the owners refused to sell or move. I believe it is still tied up in the courts.

I would also tell this company that they will be picking up the cost incurred by hiring an attorney.
If it weren`t for them, you would have never needed one to defend you. What happened to the land of the free??? You can pretty much do anything if you have money, even get away with murder. Sickening.

Good luck to you. Please keep us all posted.


Hugs,
Linda :)