Regina Ferguson Richards’ lawsuit against Cottle County reads like the beginning of a Western.
It opens with an account of the almost biblical forces Mrs. Richards has battled in the last half-century. There are natural disasters, unsavory beasts, financial ruin and even cattle disease.
“But another demon lurks in the shadows, just across her fence line,” the lawsuit reads.
So, what is the 74-year-old widow taking on next?
Cryptocurrency.
Richards claims the county, which is located about 4 hours northwest of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, misrepresented the work of a crypto mining company seeking tax incentives. The county judge promised Innovative Solar 144 and Innovative Solar 145 would construct and operate solar farms. But he didn’t do his homework, the lawsuit claims.
What he left out, Richards claims, is that the solar farms would power two crypto-mine complexes, turning the 1,200-acre Cottle County portion of her family’s ranch into “a crypto-mine sandwich.”
The size and location of the mines will “produce incessant noise” like “a giant dentist drill that won’t stop,” according to the suit.
The family first learned about the solar farms when a friend shared a notice in the local newspaper about a company applying to create two reinvestment zones and enter into tax abatement agreements. The proposed reinvestment zones include nearly 500 acres of family owned land.
County Judge Karl Holloway assured the Richardses that the projects would build two solar farms, Richards alleges.
Only through poring over documents submitted by Innovative Solar did Richards’ daughter Lara (who is an attorney) uncover the company’s intent to mine cryptocurrency, a notoriously energy-intensive process.
The county should have vetted the project, “But the Developers knew that the county was an easy mark — desperate for tax dollars and economic development,” Richards said.
She suspects the developers knew about the county’s lack of experience with tax abatements. (It had only adopted abatement guidelines a few months prior.) She also suspects the developers knew the county lacks zoning restrictions and noise ordinances that would limit the crypto mines’ operation.
The ordeal has taken a serious toll, Richards claims.
Not only will the mines sunder her property values, it will disrupt the area’s prolific hunting industry, of which Richards’ land is a part. The ordeal has also caused Richards, who lives on a fixed income and relies on income generated by the estate, inordinate stress resulting in medical issues, the lawsuit claims.
Richards is asking the court to void the reinvestment zones and tax abatement agreements. She’s also requesting financial damages.
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