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<br />
<br />SLY water
<br />tiff reveals.
<br />key player
<br />
<br />Gary Boyce, who is
<br />trying to claim San Luis
<br />Valley water, now has
<br />to share ownership
<br />of the Baca Ranch
<br />with a New Yorker
<br />
<br />B)"TO:lltllcAVOY
<br />Chieftain Del/l'''' Bureau .
<br />
<br />1
<br />
<br />DENVER - Gary Boyce's silent
<br />panner in the Baca Ranch water de-
<br />velopment I"enture isn't so silent any- .,
<br />more following the outcome of a fed-
<br />eral court lawsuit. .
<br />. U.S. District Judge Wiley Daniel
<br />. of Denver ruled recently against'
<br />. . Boyce and found that Peter Hornick.
<br />"e' a New York consultant, owns one-
<br />. ',;, fourth of Boyce's interest in the ven-
<br />;". lure doing business as Cabeza de
<br />.'.' Vaca Land and Cattle Co.
<br />:,t' ;" Late in 1994, according to court
<br />.. records; Hornick invested $375,000,
<br />matched by Boyce and his wife Joan- " ..:,
<br />..'., na, for a half-interest each in Villa .". ,..
<br />. Grove Ranch, which later was folded ,.. :
<br />. into the larger Baca Ranch deaIWith
<br />~AWDI... ',.'
<br />" Evenrually, the $375,000 invest-
<br />. ment could mean millions of dollars
<br />\ for Hornick if Boyce, through his .
<br />Stockman's Waler Co., ever wins the
<br />water rights to pump billions of gal-
<br />lons of well water to lucrative mar-
<br />kets outside the San Luis Valley.
<br />William Brittan, a Denver lawyer
<br />for Boyce and Stockman's Water,
<br />said Boyce instnlcted him not to talk
<br />to any reporters aoom the case, not
<br />even whether they will consider ap-
<br />pealing Daniel's decision,
<br />A key issue in the case was
<br />whether Homick or Boyce was most
<br />instnlmentnl in attracting Farallon
<br />Capilal, a group of wealthy investo'rs
<br />in San Francisco, to plllllp the $12.5
<br />million that sealed the A \y DI pur-
<br />chase.
<br />Please see Water, Page 2A
<br />
<br />y
<br />;., ~
<br />
<br />('veRt" CHIr-rTtJr/.l Jt./M/~/'I"t1
<br />
<br />Both sides claimed credit.
<br />In a federal coun lowsllit filed in
<br />1996, Boyce claimed that Hornick
<br />wa~ trying 10 cut n personal delll with
<br />Fllmllon. allegedly misrepresenting
<br />his stake in the development.
<br />"Farallon did not h\l~t Homick and
<br />d~sired to h:1\'e n.c; linle contact with
<br />him:1.'\ po~sible," nccording 10 Boyce,
<br />nnd "would not proceed with the ).Jro~
<br />ject if HOnlick w..' involved as an eq-
<br />uity inve~tor."
<br />Boyce argued that Hornick had
<br />breached a Jan. 25, 1995, letter agree-
<br />ment between them and should be
<br />"entitled to nothing."
<br />Afler a non-ju!)' trial last week,
<br />nowever, the judge rejected Boyce's
<br />lawsuit and recognized Hornick's
<br />counrer-clnim to one-fourth of Boyce's
<br />intere~t in the entire venture, including
<br />the ranch property and potential water
<br />development profits.
<br />.. Hornick had countersued but didn't
<br />get all he wanted, either.
<br />The New Yorker had demanded
<br />not only one.founh of Boyce '5 inter-
<br />eSI, but $8.625 million in damages, of
<br />which $7.625 million would have
<br />. been for alleged breach of contract
<br />; and $1 million for compensato!)' and
<br />i pu~itive damages. .
<br />. The dnmngc claIm, nil went nW3Y. ;
<br />Neither pnrty wa., nwmdr!d damage.,,"'-. '1 . .
<br />reported Rober! Bruce,. a Denver, ,1
<br />la~v)'crrepresentmg HOrnJck. :,,~"'( ': ~.~"'_.
<br />"But we: won the declaratory, N<.;,~;::'>' -.J;,,:.;.; '.:~~~~'~' ,.
<br />judgment saying thut Peter Hornick ' ,,;:,0..., .
<br />. ,has an. ownership interest in the enti~.:;~. }'.~~t . .-. ;, .~C" ~~...
<br />. all dC be d" LLC h' .h""'''.'. .. "-"
<br />i' ....:.~ tyc e .~ ,ZD. ~,..,Y~C3 ,w IC _~;":'\:}-:~.~\l;~.;.~. ;: ~~it. .
<br />.," \,<.::, noo/ o:vns.,~e Baca Ranch and the ~,>X~'.t!::.'.;~,):.:','.
<br />l>{:$),~ater.n~ht~. . B~~e smd. '..>.:.~~.~:~~', ; :r{~~'''i~;?'''~>'' .-r<-;-:.~:;:: ~ ....:,
<br />! ~' :.k'~ - Hornlck.s ongm3~ 25 percent.m-,.,..;~_; '-r.:1;~, 'f.'.' ~:'Ci'~><}:"
<br />. It.. tere't was diluted to 1-.5 percent when .-''':...:, ,.. .'.:. : . .'. .
<br />....1 .:. FnrallonCapitaJ's$12.5millionre!>:_.f~~"t..:,: "
<br />j reseaied 50 pOrCent of the InrgerBaca""''':\..~:: " - .
<br />
<br />\1 Ra~/f~~~~'coun decisio~'m~ans ,. ... '..'
<br />Boyce and Stockman's Water, which
<br />I includes Jeris Danielson and others,
<br />, have their 50 percent, minu, 12.5 per-
<br />i cent awarded to Hornick, while Far-
<br />i allon Capital still h.., the other 50 per-
<br />I cent.
<br />I "Peter Hornick is II consultant who
<br />i
<br />wa, able to take Gary Boyce's knowl-
<br />edge of this projecl and present it to
<br />FarnIlon," Bnlcc said. "He actunlly
<br />introduced Farallon to Boyce and
<br />helped bring them together:'
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