Drilling company calls the cops on neighborhood residents

(Update on this post: Click here for the full version of this Star-Telegram story:)

Residents in an East Fort Worth neighborhood said they were ticketed by the police when they tried to hand out fliers at a gas drilling companies lease-signing meeting.

The company wants to drill a high-impact well at New Beginnings International Church, 2000 E. Loop 820. The site, if it gets city approval, would affect dozens of surrounding homes and an apartment complex -- more than any other drill site so far, according to the president of the Brentwood-Oak Hills neighborhood association.

Check out Star-Telegram.com for more details, as they become available.

-- Mike

Comments

[david]

I see these sites going up in neighborhood areas now. No we get to look at these stupid looking sound walls wrapped around the sites. Goes to show what cities are desperate for income obviously.

[Interested Party]

"""Their exact quote was, 'If we can't control the meeting, we don't want to be there,'" he said.
Brentwood-Oak Hills and other neighborhood associations, including Meadowbrook and Eastern Hills, have been trying to set up negotiations. Two companies have been leasing in their neighborhoods -- Paloma and Chesapeake Energy, which has a drill site on Interstate 30.
O'Sullivan said the church site is ideal because it's large -- 10 acres -- and has freeway access. He said no other drill site can reach under Brentwood, Handley and other neighborhoods.
"Absent that, 1,200 acres of Barnett Shale and the mineral rights of the homeowners will not get developed," he said.
Vinson said the church site is inappropriate because it's too close to homes, and the only way to get trucks and equipment to the site is adjacent to a new subdivision. ""

This comment is not exactly correct. There is another property that is right along the highway that can be used. It has access right on the "control" road running parallel to 820 with about 6.5 acres that will not cross anyones property or neighborhood and can also access all of the Brentwood/Oaks, Handley mineral rights. Why hasn't anyone explored that property! This property is North, next to the New Beginnings International Church. Trucks will never even need to go into a neighborhood there.

Has anyone ever considered that.

[J.L.]

There is a meeting on Dec 13, 6:30pm at Eastern Hills High School auditorium. They will be presenting a lease that will go to Neighborhoods to use and will go out to all Gas Companies.

[Clayton]

McBee and D.H., I am neither a Landman nor do I work for Holland or Paloma. But what I am is a homeowner who is trying to promote more open communication. I was at the church the day the PROTESTERS came. That was the day my mom signed her lease. I don't care if someone signs today, tomorrow or next year, but I do want people to be informed of what is happening. What the plan for the area is and what the companies want to do. That is the only way we can move things along. I have been to your kind of meetings, no answers only more questions. Who put you in charge of making the best deal for us; you don't even live in my neighborhood. I don't want my friends and neighbors kept in the dark. They can only learn if they attend the meetings of the Oil companies, ask questions and make a decision for THEMSELVES. Why can't we have more open forums, I hear Mr. McBee as president of the Meadowbrook/Oak Hill area committee (or whatever you have called it) the homeowner's have been waiting for a meeting and your lease for months. Why can't you get them the answers they need? You keep telling them to STOP and not believe the lies, that you are here for them, but we haven't seen anything from you. Are you an "on the spot talker" and no action, because you don't know what your doing and now you don't want to eat crow? Pretty tuff thing to step out and promise something you can't deliver. If you wait to long how much money can you cost us? If you have a plan, why not keep us informed as to how far along you are, rather than telling us to just keep waiting, what you are getting out of this. Your people apparently only show up at Paloma meetings. WHY. Is Dale making you a SPECIAL deal to hold out and keep us in the dark?

Explain yourselves please, we want to know.

[D.H.]

I was watching. I saw and heard what happened. I didn't hear anything about asking them to join the meeting to talk with people inside. The only people that were not aggressive were the people passing out the fliers. I saw Paloma and others being aggressive at the people passing out fliers. Didn't they call the cops on them? It seems like Paloma were making a big issue over nothing. What I don't understand is who cares if there are people passing out a fliers. Most people probaly will not even read them. Why is Paloma affraid of a couple of citizens passing out fliers. Don't they have more important things to do besides picking on citizens in the neighborhood.

P.S. I do not believe the lies.

[Louis McBee]

OH! Now I get it. Clayton works for Holland or Paloma. Sorry, just took me a while to see the forest beyond the trees!
Louis

[Clayton]

D. H., walking up to someone's car and telling them to "not believe the lies" is not encouraging anyone to do anything, it's a scare tactic and harassment. I have my facts right, I was there. Were you? The flyers contained information that was inacurate and biased, so they were asked to correct the information and even join the meeting to talk with people inside. But maybe they have something to hide because they refused the invitation, maybe they don't have a clue as to why they are even really there.

[D.H.]

I do not think what Clayton called protester were protesting you need to get your facts right. They were handing information to read the lease agreement carefully and make sure to understand what you are signing. If they don't understand it have someone else explain what they are signing (second opion). This has nothing to do with what you decide on. Telling people to STOP and THINK. If they have a problem with that,they might have something to hide. Telling people to join in with a neighborhood association is not a protest. It's an ideal.

[D.H.]

I do not think what Clayton called protester were protesting you need to get your facts right. They were handing information to read the lease agreement carefully and make sure to understand what you are signing. If they don't understand it have someone else explain what they are signing (second opion). This has nothing to do with what you decide on. Telling people to STOP and THINK. If they have a problem with that,they might have something to hide. Telling people to join in with a neighborhood association is not a protest. It's an ideal.

[Clayton]

Ahh, Yes. To only know one side of any story is truly a shame.

The gas company didn't call the police on the PROTESTERS, that's what they have become. It was a homeowner from the neighborhood they had no need to be in. The TWO(2)not ten not twenty, but two guys handing out flyers with information just as baseless as the comments above, were not residents of that neighborhood, but one almost a mile away. They were asked to come in and join the meeting and sit down to talk. They refused the invitation more than once. After being asked to at least not pass out flyers with incomplete information, and really do the public a service and get all their facts together, they were asked to leave the property by the pastor of the church. They did, only to return later and start APPROACHING PEOPLE AT THEIR CARS AS THEY CAME AND WENT!

If a church has allowed a meeting to take place in its facilities, it should always feel safe for the homeowners. It was VERY AGGRESIVE of the PROTESTERS to approach people at their vehicles, and it was one of these very people who in fact called the police, not the gas company. The rest of the homeowners should be aware that the PROTESTERS may not always have their best interests in mind. After all no one is going to tell me what to do with MY HOUSE.

[G. Giles/EHHA]

WHAT IS OUR QUALITY OF LIFE WORTH? If we even got to $24,000 for the amount of land many of us have in Meadowbrook and Eastern Hills, about 1/4 acre and maybe up to about 1/3 acre....we would get about $6,000 to $8,000.

For those with an 1/8 of an acre...5,000 square feet, which is what most folks have for a lot size in many parts of Fort Worth, they would only get $3,000 if it got to $24,000 per acre. PEANUTS! When we take it down to reality, which is what we need to do...then even $50,000 per acre is not enough for what we will lose in the long run, while they make billions, and while our property values fall far lower than we will ever make on this. Think this through folks and add up the numbers....for me and many others, they just do not add up. What we are being offered is not near enough to make it worth while in the long run.

The acreage price sounds great until you break it down into the pieces of pie that we all have. We will never make anything close to what folks think they will. When they are hearing the price per acre...very few have an acre and when folks realize that we are sharing 25% in royalty payments with 160 to 340 other folks...that also substantially reduces the amount they get, which also relates to PEANUTS.

We are worth more than that by a long shot. I am not being greedy, it is just I cannot put a price on what my piece of mind, my health, my quality of life, and my neighbor's too at anywhere near where we are now. In the meantime, we get to see how all this pans out for the other neighborhoods that have signed and set toward being having active drilling in the next few months, see if the city is going to go against neighborhoods in allowing high impact wells, despite what we want, see what the city is going to do to allow on site dumping of waste, which the gas companies say is harmless.....it contains some very hazardous chemicals....frac pits close to where your children play....what is your piece of mind worth as far as they are concerned? In later years will you be glad you made the same choice? If we find out later that our cancer rate is higher, that there are chemicals that have leached into our precious acquifers, trucks that are spilling waste into our Trinity River, which by the way, Don Young found was happening just a week ago, despite denials. Look at more than the money, because in the big scheme of things, that money will seem paltry in comparison. Choose wisely and don't listen to hype. They want you to think that there is some rush to do all this. There is not. They are not going away....so WHAT IS THE RUSH to sign anything, except so that they can play poker with your leases and sell them to someone else? Every time that happens, and it does, they make a big profit, especially for those that thought they were going to miss out....they did...by signing! Our quality of life is worth far more than you think.

[G. Giles/EHHA]

WHAT IS OUR QUALITY OF LIFE WORTH? If we even got to $24,000 for the amount of land many of us have in Meadowbrook and Eastern Hills, about 1/4 acre and maybe up to about 1/3 acre....we would get about $6,000 to $8,000.

For those with an 1/8 of an acre...5,000 square feet, which is what most folks have for a lot size in many parts of Fort Worth, they would only get $3,000 if it got to $24,000 per acre. PEANUTS! When we take it down to reality, which is what we need to do...then even $50,000 per acre is not enough for what we will lose in the long run, while they make billions, and while our property values fall far lower than we will ever make on this. Think this through folks and add up the numbers....for me and many others, they just do not add up. What we are being offered is not near enough to make it worth while in the long run.

The acreage price sounds great until you break it down into the pieces of pie that we all have. We will never make anything close to what folks think they will. When they are hearing the price per acre...very few have an acre and when folks realize that we are sharing 25% in royalty payments with 160 to 340 other folks...that also substantially reduces the amount they get, which also relates to PEANUTS.

We are worth more than that by a long shot. I am not being greedy, it is just I cannot put a price on what my piece of mind, my health, my quality of life, and my neighbor's too at anywhere near where we are now. In the meantime, we get to see how all this pans out for the other neighborhoods that have signed and set toward being having active drilling in the next few months, see if the city is going to go against neighborhoods in allowing high impact wells, despite what we want, see what the city is going to do to allow on site dumping of waste, which the gas companies say is harmless.....it contains some very hazardous chemicals....frac pits close to where your children play....what is your piece of mind worth as far as they are concerned? In later years will you be glad you made the same choice? If we find out later that our cancer rate is higher, that there are chemicals that have leached into our precious acquifers, trucks that are spilling waste into our Trinity River, which by the way, Don Young found was happening just a week ago, despite denials. Look at more than the money, because in the big scheme of things, that money will seem paltry in comparison. Choose wisely and don't listen to hype. They want you to think that there is some rush to do all this. There is not. They are not going away....so WHAT IS THE RUSH to sign anything, except so that they can play poker with your leases and sell them to someone else? Every time that happens, and it does, they make a big profit, especially for those that thought they were going to miss out....they did...by signing! Our quality of life is worth far more than you think.

[JU]

Brentwood Oak Hill Will stop high impact in there back yard reguardless of any cost.

[JW]

That comment was almost as baseless as HER comment. Where do you come up with stuff like that?

[Archie]

NOTE TO JW: No "she" will not settle for $10K per acre. The neighborhood association voted NOT to support a high impact well permit regardless of the circumstances. I suppose (almost) everyone has their price though. However, in this case I would suggest that the people who own homes within the high impact area get at least 50% of their home value for their signature on a waiver....because that is what it will COST them.

[Jerry Balsom]

This is a tragedy, they are doing, what they said they would not do. Now they are drilling everywhere. We will end up like Midland , Odessa,and Lulling ,Texas. Ugly, dirty, and smelly.How can the city of Fort Worth's government, let us down like this? I think Mayor Mike Mondrief, is behind all of this. He loves money, and has always been in the Oil and Gas Industry.

[JW]

"The site, if it gets city approval, would affect dozens of surrounding homes and an apartment complex -- more than any other drill site so far, according to the president of the Brentwood-Oak Hills neighborhood association."

Must have taken a great deal of research to determine that. But...he'll settle right now for $10K/acre.

[JW]

Going out on a limb?: "The site, if it gets city approval, would affect dozens of surrounding homes and an apartment complex -- more than any other drill site so far, according to the president of the Brentwood-Oak Hills neighborhood association."

Must have done a great deal of research to determine that.

[b.k. maddox]

The Barnett Shale scam is in full swing.The private citizen will never see adime from these resources.The Inc.'s and Co's and politicians will certainly see to that.If your not careful they will use iminant?domain to get the money.get in their way and see what happens.