Friday June 5, 2009
The money keeps trickling in to Linton’s Enchanted Gardens from Elkhart County, $16,751 this time.
To make way for the planned widening of Six Span Bridge, the C.R. 17 connector over the St. Joseph River, the county bought out Linton’s spot off the southeast corner of the crossing for $1.5 million. It also paid the nursery $261,000 to cover costs to relocate to its new location further south along C.R. 17 last year.
That didn’t end matters. The firm got another $15,000 last March for additional moving costs and on Monday, Elkhart County commissioners appropriated $16,751 for yet more costs, including the design of new brochures. That brings to $1.79 million the amount the county has paid Linton’s, all to make sure the firm is fairly compensated for being forced out of its old spot.
It’s not over, though, which makes this condemnation process one of the most involved and frustrating — not to mention costly — that Elkhart County Attorney Gordon Lord has participated in. More than a year after its move down C.R. 17, Linton’s has more claims for reimbursement pending, according to Lord, and plans to appeal a mediator’s decision to reject some others.
Contact me at tvandenack@etruth.com.