As part of a pending civil lawsuit, a Pittsburgh senior federal judge determined that Svonavec Inc. did not establish that it possessed any right to mine the coal under the Flight 93 National Memorial at the time the United States acquired the company's land by eminent domain, other than eight acres not in dispute.
On Sept. 2, 2009, the federal government acquired Svonavec Inc.'s 275.81 acres in Stonycreek Township by eminent domain for use as the Flight 93 National Memorial. The acquisition was subject to existing easements and certain rights of third parties that included coal mining rights.
Immediately after the Sept. 11, 2001, crash of Flight 93, on which crew and passengers gave up their lives to fight a terrorist takeover of the aircraft, Svonavec Inc. set up a temporary memorial on its property at the crash site. Within weeks the public was using the temporary memorial to honor the heroes of Flight 93. The coal company did not use its land for any other purpose from that date until the United States took ownership of the property on Sept. 2, 2009.
The federal government has the authority to take private property for public use as long as it satisfies its constitutional obligation to provide "just compensation." In general just compensation means the fair market value of the property on the date it is taken, according to federal case law.
By law, the government must explore all aspects of the value of a property it takes ownership of through eminent domain to determine the amount it needs to pay for the property. Mineral rights are one aspect.
"This is a very complex case. The case is still active. The judge's decision (on the coal mining rights) is just one small issue that is involved in the case," said Somerset attorney Patrick Svonavec, who represents Svonavec Inc. of Somerset.
The federal government did not dispute that Svonavec Inc. owned the 275.81 acres of surface land on Sept. 11, 2001, but it argued that the company did not own the coal underneath. If the court had determined that Svonavec Inc. owned the right to mine coal, the property more than likely would have a higher value.
Senior U.S. District Judge Donetta Ambrose agreed with the federal government's argument.
In the civil action, Svonavec, the defendant, was required to present documentation on the chain of possession of mining rights under the tract.
"Defendant relies primarily on missing, unrecorded and incomplete documents to support its chain of title for the alleged coal leases," Ambrose wrote. "The existence, terms and/or validity of these documents are unknown and unknowable to the court."
The government believes $611,000 is just compensation for the property. A company official has said he believes that amount is too low.
"I anticipate the court will tell us soon a timeline, and hopefully we get it to trial and get a resolution," Svonavec said.
U.S. Attorney Albert Schollaert, who is listed as the attorney on behalf of the federal government, did not respond to a telephone request for comment.