Verizon seemingly preparing for a tower on our land after no contact for 10+ years.
Hello! Apologies if this isn't the right sub (grateful for directions to a more appropriate one if not).
In maybe 2013 or 2014, my family was contacted by Verizon or an associated company about putting a cell tower on our land. The area has poor cell service and we thought it would be a good bit of income, so a contract was signed. The terms are something like: "25 years lease; X amount of dollars a month, with that increasing by Y% every 5 years; covering tax increasing caused by the tower; starting when the construction project begins."
They and their associates have been radio silent on us since 2015. Our old contacts don't respond, likely cycled out of the company during the 10+ years and we only have received the info that they might finally be doing something (they were apparently waiting for fiber to reach our area) now inadvertently.
This is in Minnesota. We had assumed the lease reservation had run out as they don't seem to have acted on it for so long, but I'm not sure. Are we in a position to do some renegotiation? Is it worth contacting a law firm, or do we likely have no standing with a contract signed 10+ years ago?
Their poor contact has me worried about how difficult it's going to be to get them to pay for property tax increases, the lease in general, if we see anything go on the fritz that they ought to know about...