Neighbors question motives of embattled feedlot officer
BY LEE BONORDEN/lee.bonorden@austindailyherald.com
8/28/07
When Lowell Franzen announced plans to build the largest swine confinement operation in Mower County, he had a legal notice published in the Austin Daily Herald.
The notice appeared in the newspaper Sept. 27, 2006, and announced he was planning to build a new feedlot in Section 30, Lyle Township with a capacity of 1,990 animal units.
The notice also informed all of an information meeting at his farm at 12370 505th Ave. on Oct. 5, 2006.
Franzen invited people to contact him with their questions or the Mower County feedlot officer at the county employee’s office.
Franzen is the Mower County feedlot officer.
Since Tim Carroll, who does have a feedlot permit for his draft horses, went public a week ago, no one else in the vicinity of Franzen’s proposed feedlot — now in the hands of something called the “Santos Group LLC,” whose authorized representatives are the owners of Holden Farms Inc. — none of Franzen’s neighbors, who are themselves livestock producers with feedlot permits issued by the feedlot officer have been willing to comment “on the record.”
When the person controlling one’s livelihood as a livestock producer in the form of a feedlot permit does something, the producers chose to be silent.
Now, one neighbor of Franzen’s proposed feedlot project is speaking out.
Dave Patterson has lived near the site for 15 years. He granted Franzen an easement for a field tile across his property.
Patterson claims despite being the closest neighbor to the site, he wasn’t notified.
“Nobody bothered to send me a letter,” Patterson said. “Nobody called me about any meeting.
“I feel that my rights have been trampled on,” Patterson said. “I’ve never complained before about this. I gave him an easement to cross my property with a field tile, too.
“I’ve lost 15 years of equity in my property because of this. I’m never going to be able to see it for what it’s worth,” he said.
Construction continues today on the buildings at the swine confinement operation. Three buildings are being constructed on both sides of a Lyle Township road.
Franzen was placed on paid administrative leave Aug. 3 by Mower County, pending the outcome of an investigation. Mower County has retained a private attorney to pursue the investigation.
On Monday, Franzen was served with civil papers notifying him of Carroll’s complaints.
Last Friday, Mower County Auditor-Treasurer Doug Groh was also served with civil papers after Carroll alleged the county official refused to allow him to see public records concerning the land transaction that ensued between Franzen and Santos Group LLC.
Holden Farms Inc. of Northfield, whose registered owners are Nick, Nate and Tyler Holden, was also served with civil papers by the Rice County Sheriff’s Office.
According to Carroll, he wants the district court to issue a temporary injunction halting construction at the feedlot site until the allegations can be investigated.
By having civil process papers served on Franzen personally and as the Mower County feedlot officer, Carroll has implicated the county in the alleged wrong-doings.
Carroll, armed with documentation to support his allegations, claims Franzen obtained a feedlot permit in his name while “knowingly intending to transfer the permit and sell the land to Holden Farms Inc.”
Neither Franzen nor Holden Farms have responded to the Austin Daily Herald’s requests for comment.
Rebuffed by Mower County officials and staff in seeking a hearing, Carroll took his case to state officials, including the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency.
The MPCA cleared Franzen, who helped Mower County write its own feedlot regulations, March 29 this year. “This project can now proceed to permitting,” wrote Richard Newquist, MPCA supervisor for environmental review.
Carroll was able to convince the Land Stewardship Project that his concerns of wrong-doing were legitimate.
The LSP retained its own attorney to pursue an investigation.
According to Carroll’s and the LSP’s documentation, the MPCA granted a feedlot permit — something he could not himself do, because of the size of the animal units — March 29.
Two weeks later, on April 13, Franzen sold the 14 acres of unimproved farm land to Santos Group for $292,000, or $20,857 per acre.
Five days later, on April 18, Franzen transferred his feedlot permit to Santos Group LLC.
Without questioning the transfer, the MPCA approved the transfer from Franzen to the corporation also April 18.
“They’re putting up three buildings; not two like it said in the original permit,” Carroll said. “There’s too many holes in this permit, too many coincidences. He never intended to build that feedlot himself. It was always for Holden Farms.”
Copyright © 2007 Austin Daily Herald Inc. All rights reserved.
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