Tennessee using eminent domain to seize farmland to connect electric truck and battery plants to interstate

The state of Tennessee is using eminent domain to seize land in order to build connecting roads from a new electric truck plant to the interstate, undervaluing the land of local farmers in a series of lawsuits, according to the Tennessee Lookout.

Blue Oval City, an electric truck and battery assembly complex named after the Ford logo, is set to be operational in 2025. The state's department of transportation has planned a new highway to service the massive development, which would allow employees and shipments alike to travel into and out of the area.

According to the Tennessee Department of Transportation, the state is looking to purchase or seize 35 separate tracts to construct connections and widenings to link the Ford campus with a new exit to accommodate workers and manufacturing.

The state has taken 15 tracts so far, according to a spokesperson, and is in negotiations with property owners for the remaining 20.

While the $5.6 billion investment brings 5,800 jobs to the state-owned 4,200-acre site in Haywood County, Tennessee, it is the proposed connecting roads and highway interchange that are causing a headache for local farmers, not the existence of the vehicle production facilities themselves.

Marvin Sanderlin, a 72-year-old farmer who owns 400 acres in Stanton, Tennessee, told the Tennessee Lookout that he isn't bothered by the development, but rather the state's offer on his land. Sanderlin is being to taken to court for 10 acres of his land, for which the state is offering $37,500 or $3,750 per acre.

“That’s unheard of,” Sanderlin said. “You can’t buy no land here for $3,500 an acre. You can’t buy a swamp here for $3,500,” Sanderlin added. “I told them this is the biggest rip-off there is. They want your land, but they don’t want you to participate in the wealth.”

A search for available lots in Stanton, Tennessee, shows varying prices, all well above what Sanderlin is being offered.

One piece of land is available for approximately $29,000 per acre, while another is listed at approximately $10,750 per acre. Other lots ask for $223,000 and $460,000 per acre depending on the many variables of real estate pricing.

A retired schoolteacher named Ray Jones also claims unfair treatment. Despite welcoming the Ford plant, Jones was served an eminent domain lawsuit in February 2023 at $8,165 for an acre.

As well, 82-year-old Rose Whitmore says she was offered $8,000 for two acres of land and was served with a condemnation lawsuit after rejecting the state's offer. As a child, Whitmore says she and her 10 siblings harvested cotton, corn, sorghum, and peas to pay off her parents’ mortgage.

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