Schuylkill County may sell 975 acres for $1.37 million to nature conservancy, state game commission
Mar. 7—POTTSVILLE — Schuylkill County commissioners could vote Wednesday to sell 975.5 acres of land in Tremont Twp. for $1,375,000.
The commissioners discussed the potential sale of two parcels, one 231.7 and the other 743.8 acres, to The Nature Conservancy Pennsylvania/Delaware Chapter and the state game commission at their March 1 meeting and the topic is on Wednesday's agenda.
The smaller tract is just east of Interstate 81, and the larger one is west of the highway and south of the border with Porter Twp., according to a map of the area. Both properties abut state game lands.
"I'm a farmer. Typically, I buy land and do not sell it," Chairman Barron L. "Boots" Hetherington said last week. "However, this is an usual opportunity.
"Under game commission ownership, the area will remain open for public hunting, and there is no foreseeable situation where strip mining would occur. There was a possibility the land could have been sold for private use, but that would have excluded public hunting and public recreation."
Hetherington said money from the sale will be used for projects "that will benefit every citizen in the county."
Commissioner George F. Halcovage Jr. questioned why the property was being sold below the $2,000 an acre price the county usually accepts, and without value for mineral rights.
At $2,000 per acre, the selling price would be nearly $600,000 higher at $1,951,000.
"What's this magic $2,000 number you are coming up with?" Hetherington asked.
County Administrator Gary R. Bender said the county generally has sold land at a minimum of $2,000 per acre, but he acknowledged the uniqueness of this situation.
Nicole Wooten, land protection manager with the Nature Conservancy, said a third-party independent appraisal was done that established the price.
"As a nonprofit organization, we are not allowed to make a profit off land, so we have to follow that appraisal," she said, adding that it represents the fair market value.
Halcovage said he understood the reasoning, but he still voiced concerns about the price.
"If we now do it at a lower amount, all of a sudden, that's going to be a precedent, and that's going to create some other issues that we have to deal with," he said.
In relation to mineral rights, Commissioner Gary J. Hess said a lawsuit filed years ago determined mineral rights can't be obtained because of the proximity of the properties to the Lebanon Reservoir in Pine Grove Twp.
Hetherington agreed, saying the Lebanon Water Authority challenged a mining permit for that area.
Contact the writer: amarchiano@republicanherald.com; 570-628-6023
