Foreclosure of land for Baard plant halted

LISBON — The scheduled foreclosure sale of a major piece of property sought for the Baard Energy project was canceled at the last minute, as the bank attempts to “negotiate a settlement” with an undisclosed party. The 146 acres in Yellow Creek Township, owned by convicted felon Peter Barta II, were to be auctioned off at a sheriff’s sale scheduled for Tuesday morning. The property was withdrawn from the list of sales after Columbiana County Common Pleas Court Judge David Tobin granted a motion filed by Huntington National Bank. The bank, which holds the mortgage on the property located on Sixteen School Road, filed a motion Friday with Judge Tobin, stating it no longer wished for the foreclosure sale to proceed at this time because “the parties are negotiating a settlement ...” The 146 acres are part of the 522 acres outside of Wellsville where Baard Energy wants to build a $6 billion plant that would convert coal and biomass into synthetic liquid fuel. The county Port Authority has been awarded $5 million in federal money to secure options on the property and eventually purchase the 17 parcels on behalf of Baard Energy, but it has yet to do so because the company has been unable to line up private financing for the project to proceed. The port authority had an option to purchase Barta’s property for $1.4 million, but that was before he was charged and convicted of running a meth lab on the property. Earlier this year, Barta was sentenced to four and a half years in prison. Meanwhile, earlier this year the bank obtained a foreclosure judgment against Barta in the amount of $186,068, which meant the port authority would now have to purchase the property at a sheriff’s sale. Port authority attorney Tim Brookes was contacted Tuesday and asked if the port authority was negotiating with the bank to purchase Barta’s property. “The port authority was aware the property was going to be withdrawn from immediate sale,” he said, declining further comment. The bank’s attorney, Robert H. Young of Cleveland, was also contacted but would only respond to questions mailed to him in a letter. Officials in the sheriff’s office said the property was appraised at $159,000, and the minimum bid required at the foreclosure sale to purchase Barta’s land would have been $106,000. Further confusing the situation is the fact the county prosecutor’s office was able to get the property forfeited to the county since it was used in committing a drug offense. The bank holds the first lien, however, which means the county would only receive money if the foreclosure sale resulted in a winning bid in excess of the $186,068 owed on the mortgage. tgiambroni@mojonews.com