CARYVILLE, Tenn. — The Caryville Board of Mayor and Aldermen called a special meeting on Oct. 24, 2023 to sell 39 acres of Caryville-owned land for $740,240. Before elected officials agreed to sell the public land, the town didn't release any information about the sale, the buyer or the purchase agreement, aside from the purchase price.
Through conversations with Caryville's Mayor, the town attorney and Tennessee Open Records law experts, Caryville agreed to follow Tennessee law and release the option agreement for that land to 10News on Dec. 8, more than a month after Caryville's Board of Mayor and Aldermen agreed to sell the land and 10News first requested information about the sale.
The document said Caryville will sell 38.96 acres for $740,240 to a company called United Rare Earths, Inc. Sale documents show that company has an address in Franklin.
Mayor Robert L. Stooksbury previously refused to release information about the buyer or the draft agreement because he said the buyer requested confidentiality.
"When the company's making an investment, they want to be the ones who say when and where," Stooksbury said in a phone call with 10News. "This is not nothing new. It's just done all the time."
When Caryville refused to release the documents to 10News, Tennessee Coalition for Open Government Executive Director Deborah Fisher said Caryville didn't follow Tennessee law surrounding open government.
10News passed along the meeting agenda and the minutes to both Fisher and the Tennessee Comptroller's Office of Open Records Counsel, the state resource for issues related to Tennessee's public records and open meetings laws.
Fisher said documents related to economic development should become public once they're released to the governing body for approval, in this case, the town's board of mayor and aldermen.
"That a sale is pending, or that another party to a contract does not want information released, are not reasons to withhold information," said J. Seth May, assistant general counsel at the Comptroller's office, in an email.
Based on the documents 10News provided, May and Fisher said Caryville also likely violated Tennessee's Open Meetings Act, in voting to approve the sale of the land.
10News received the Oct. 24 meeting agenda on Nov. 7 and minutes on Nov. 17 through multiple written requests to Caryville and its attorney. The agenda for the special called meeting had one item: "Council to discuss Industrial property."
The meeting minutes also had one item: "Mr. Josh Monday made the motion to sell 39 acres of land near the 141 exit at $19,000 an acre pending the agreement to be signed and agreed upon between both and Mayor’s signature and approval , Mr. Lloyd Lawson seconded the motion. All Council Members present voted yes."
"Caryville did not provide adequate public notice of the actual purpose of the meeting," May said in an email to 10News. "The word discuss does not imply that a vote would be taken. Given the above, it is likely that Caryville likely violated TOMA by calling a special-called meeting and changing the purpose of the meeting at the meeting itself."
Information about the buyer wasn't provided to the public in either the meeting agenda or the minutes.
"They should indicate who they're considering selling the property to," Fisher said. "Listen, this is government transparency 101."
Fisher said someone could challenge the sale of the property in Caryville and a judge could void it if the court found the town didn't follow state law in approving the sale.