Source:  MEATINGPLACE.COM, 4/27/11

The city of Wilson, North Carolina, and area homeowners who oppose a proposed Sanderson Farms poultry processing plant have filed a second lawsuit against Nash County, this time challenging a rezoning decision that would permit the plant to be built, local media reported.

The lawsuit filed in North Carolina Superior Court in Nashville seeks to have the county Board of Commissioners’ April 4 decision to rezone a parcel of land being considered for the project voided on the grounds that it does not comply with state laws, the Rocky Mount Telegram reported. The suit also claims Nash County failed to consider other uses for the site and approved the rezoning solely to accommodate Sanderson Farms.

County officials have denied the claims.

The city of Wilson and homeowners in Nash and Wilson counties initially sued Nash County in November, claiming that rezoning the site would hurt their property values and raising concerns about the environmental impact of the proposed 180,000-square-foot plant. 

Sanderson Farms Chief Financial Officer Mike Cockrell told Meatingplace the company remains committed to a second North Carolina facility but has put plans on hold due to market conditions. 

Cockrell said Sanderson is also looking at a site in Goldsboro, N.C., for a second plant. The company’s other North Carolina plant opened in Kinston in January 2011. The second facility will be dedicated to the big bird deboning market, Cockrell said.

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