Photo credit: Stine Seed Company
But Woodward officials quickly ran into a problem. Though the city and the Iowa Economic Development Authority paid a combined $435,000 to prepare the 190-acre property for development, neither group actually had claim to the land.
It was in the hands of private property owners, including Harry Stine, founder of Adel-based Stine Seeds, whom Forbes ranks as the richest man in Iowa, with an estimated net worth of $6.6 billion. Stine owns about 54 of those acres, and when the buyer's representatives approached last fall, he demanded more money. Seed entrepreneur Harry Stine's Adel-based business is the world's largest privately held seed company.
The two sides negotiated for months. But eventually, the buyer backed away. Woodward announced in late November that the deal was dead.
No comments:
Post a Comment