Madison, Wis.-Both Agrium Inc. and Habitat for Humanity of Dane County have confirmed that the organization has taken the first step toward acquiring the former Royster-Clark fertilizer plant that has been a community eyesore as well as a source of disagreement between Agrium and city officials. “Yes, the report about our looking to purchase the plant site is accurate,” Habitat spokeswoman Cheryl McCollum told Green Markets. “We are still in the early discussion phase with the current owners of the property, Agrium,” McCollum reported. “We have until Dec. 28 to fulfill the contingencies that are part of the purchase agreement. One of those contingencies includes approval of the purchase by our board of directors. We also are awaiting a cost analysis for the cleanup of the property from the State Department of Natural Resources.” Agrium spokesman Paul Poister said the two are still “far from a final decision (although) we are encouraged that there are real plans for the property and we are prepared to fulfill our obligations regarding cleanup.” Poister emphasized that Agrium’s top priority for what he termed as a “very complex project” is to leave the property clean and ready to be put to its best use for the neighborhood and the City of Madison. Habitat officials want to build a center for Habitat for Humanity’s operations, plus housing.
Transparency Across the Fertilizer Value-Chain