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ASTORIA, Ore. - Liquefied natural gas terminal developer Oregon LNG has filed a lawsuit against the Port of Astoria to ensure a lease gets renewed as a deadline approaches with unanswered questions about who really owns the land.
The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Portland on Wednesday, one day after the Port Commission's decision to delay a vote on the controversial lease of 96 acres along the Columbia River on the Skipanon Peninsula.
Oregon LNG renewed its sublease with the Port for a 30-year term in April. But the Port has yet to renew the underlying lease of state land with lingering questions about whether fraud was involved when it was renewed for five years in 2004.
Officials hope a state investigation into business deals under former port director Peter Gearin will be released before the Aug. 31 deadline. In February, Gearin pleaded guilty to violating the federal Clean Water Act.
The port, under Gearin's direction, illegally discharged dredged material into the Columbia River estuary without permission from state or federal regulators in 2005 when it was up against a deadline for dredging the waterfront to accommodate the cruise ship business.
In 2004, the Port Commission signed a passthrough lease agreement with the state and Calpine Corp., which is now Oregon LNG.
The Port charges the company $38,400 per year to sublease the Skipanon property but it turns all the money over to the state.
Oregon LNG CEO Peter Hansen said the lawsuit is a precautionary measure, intended to protect his company's investment in case the port decides not to renew the state lease next month.
The current Port of Astoria director, Jack Crider, said this might be the last chance the port has to get out of the lease or correct any missteps, because agreeing to the next lease term commits the port for at least 30 years, and possibly 60 years.
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