Camden County will have to wait to purchase the property proposed for the controversial Spaceport Camden project after a judge granted a temporary restraining order halting the transaction until after a court hearing next month.
The order and request for an interlocutory injunction was filed last week by Camden residents James Goodman and Paul Harris. Camden County Superior Court Judge Stephen G. Scarlett granted the restraining order on Tuesday and scheduled a hearing on the injunction for Jan. 5.
While the parties wait for the hearing, the Camden County Probate Court is working to verify petition signatures of more than 3,000 Camden County voters who oppose the project. The petition could force a referendum on the land purchase.
The court has 60 days from the Dec. 14 filing to verify the signatures and 90 days from the filing to call for a special election if the petition is verified.
A total of 3,400 signatures, which represents 10% of registered Camden County voters, are needed to force the special election. The petition delivered to the court has just over 3,800 signatures, according to Megan Desrosiers, president and CEO of coastal nonprofit, One Hundred Miles, which helped to organize the petition.
Camden County has sought approval of the project since 2015. On Monday, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) granted them a long-delayed site operator's license.
The license authorizes Camden County to operate Spaceport Camden but any planned rocket launches would require further FAA safety, environmental, and other reviews and analyses.
The site would include a vertical launch facility, launch control center complex, alternate control center and visitor center and mission preparation area.
The 11,800-acre facility would be located on a defunct industrial site some 10 miles across the Cumberland River and wetlands from Cumberland Island.
Order on Temporary Restraining Order by savannahnow.com on Scribd
Camden officials have touted the project as a ‘once-in-a-generation opportunity’ that will serve as an economic booster for Camden County and the entire state.
Opponents have said the project is too risky, citing launch failures; damage to private property; the closure of surrounding waterways; the impact operations at nearby Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base for the 12 planned launches each year; and site contamination.
The spaceport would be located on a site once home to the Thiokol Chemical Corp. Later the property was sold to Union Carbide Corp., a Texas-based chemical corporation. The surrounding area was also previously the location of The Bayer CropScience plant, which produced Temik, a pesticide used on crops. The plant closed in 2012.
Katie Nussbaum is the city and county government reporter for the Savannah Morning News. Contact her at knussbaum@savannahnow.com. Twitter: KnussSMN
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Camden County judge halts Spaceport Camden purchase
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