Pending agreement on Taum Sauk/Katy Trail connection confirmed by court filing

The Associated Press has obtained a court filing that confirms that negotiations for a settlement about the Taum Sauk disaster are moving forward and may be complete soon.

Energy company AmerenUE controls both the Taum Sauk reservoir that collapsed in December 2005 and the Rock Island railroad corridor that is the key to "completing the Katy Trail" by connecting it to the Kansas City metro area.

Almost 5000 Katy Trail supporters, organized by the Missouri Bicycle Federation, have contacted the Department of Natural Resources, the Attorney General, and Ameren, asking for the Katy Trail connection to Kansas City to be included in the settlement agreement.

According to the AP article by Christopher Leonard:

The Oct. 18 filing asks a Missouri Court of Appeals judge to delay a hearing related to the reservoir collapse because: "All parties to this matter are in the final stages of negotiating a settlement, which if and when completed, will moot this appeal."

Gov. Matt Blunt's spokeswoman Jessica Robinson confirmed a settlement is near.

"Gov. Blunt believes that this process has taken far too long, but we are in fact very close to a settlement agreement that we believe is in the best interests of Missouri — tough on Ameren and with fair compensation for the people of Reynolds County," where the accident occurred, Robinson said. . . .

Ameren has spent months negotiating with state agencies affected by the December 2005 reservoir collapse, which devastated much of the Johnson's Shut-Ins state park and injured a family of five. Missouri Attorney General Jay Nixon is suing Ameren and has joined the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and Department of Conservation in negotiating a settlement. . . . .

Robinson would not discuss details of the settlement, except to say Blunt has been pushing for Ameren to use a stretch of railroad it owns as a piece of the Katy Trail and to repair Johnson's Shut-Ins.

Read more in the Springfield News-Leader article.