Camden County Fee members might begin feeling like they’re within the film “Groundhog Day” within the coming months.
Newly elected Camden County Commissioner Jim Goodman made a movement throughout his first assembly earlier this month to cease spending cash on authorized charges associated to a spaceport.
The vote failed, however Goodman mentioned he plans to make the identical movement at each assembly till he will get the three votes mandatory for the county to cease all spending associated to the spaceport, together with paying legal professionals, and to show over data requested associated to a danger evaluation of rocket launches from the location.
The lawsuits are self-imposed and might be resolved simply, he mentioned.
“They volunteered to step into the center of a lawsuit,” he mentioned.
The simplest of the 4 lawsuits to resolve is one by the environmental group One Hundred Miles. It’s in search of data associated to potential rocket failures from the proposed launch website. The county has argued the data is just not public document as a result of it’s a part of an ongoing actual property transaction.
Seventy-two % of Camden County voters permitted a referendum final 12 months prohibiting the county fee from spending any extra money on the spaceport mission. Greater than $12 million has been spent, to this point.
“Each fee assembly, I’m going to make the identical movement to show over all of the paperwork,” he mentioned. “Simply give them the paperwork and the expense goes away. It’s a misplaced trigger.”
The county can be suing Union Carbide for breach of contract after the corporate determined to not shut on the property sale as a result of voters permitted the referendum banning commissioners from spending any extra money on the mission.
“That one may go away actual quick,” Goodman mentioned. “Truly, they’re all straightforward to resolve.”
One other lawsuit includes the Federal Aviation Administration’s determination to subject a launch website operator’s license. Opponents mentioned the FAA ignored many issues concerning the dangers of rockets launched over Cumberland and Little Cumberland islands, the place there are dozens of residences and historic buildings, and environmentally marshes and wetlands.
The case almost definitely to be the primary to be resolved is the county’s authorized problem to the referendum to ban the county from spending any extra money on a spaceport.
That case is now being thought of by the Georgia Supreme Court docket. A ruling is anticipated in February.
