Jackson County BZA extends permit for 8,000-head swine operation

BROWNSTOWN - Jackson County Board of Zoning Appeals extended a special exception request it granted for a confined animal feeding operation in the Reddington area in October 2005 for a year.

During a brief meeting Tuesday night, Joe Miller, the attorney for Talara Lykins, told the board that since the time the board approved Lykins' special exception, three lawsuits had been filed.

"She won all three, but two have been appealed," Miller said during the meeting.

That means Lykins has not gone forward with her plans to build the 8,000-head hog feeding operation on an 11-acre site at 1125 N. 1200E, Seymour, Miller said. The state, however, requires construction to begin within two years of a special exception being granted, Miller said.

The state approved Lykins' application for the CAFO in September 2006, and this June, Judge Mary L. Davidsen cleared the way for Lykins to proceed after dismissing a request to overturn IDEM's approval by opponents.

"I think within the next year the lawsuits will be finished," Miller said.

The board voted 4-0 to allow for the one-year extension. Board President Francis Elliott recused himself from the decision.