State Agency Amends, Approves Contract To Buy Farmland From U.s. Sugar Corp.

摘要

Tampa,fla.-The South Florida Water Management District approved a contract Dec. 16 to purchase from U.S. Sugar Corp. some 292 square miles of farmland in the Everglades Agricultural Area as part of the Everglades restoration effort.rnThe 4-3 vote in favor of an amended contract by the district's board of governors sent the proposed deal back to U.S. Sugar with a new financing-protection clause for the state. The financing clause was the only amendment approved, and the $1.34 billion purchase price and acreage remain unchanged from the contract terms approved by the U.S. Sugar board of directors in November.rnThe amendment would allow the governing board to review the most current economic conditions-including interest rates and revenue streams-and verify the district's capacity to finance the purchase and accomplish its existing statutory mandates and legal obligations, the district said in a written statement.