Bidding begins on Forest Service land

The bidding on land in Sisters owned by the Deschutes National Forest has begun.

On Monday, June 23, at 9 a.m., the General Services Administration (GSA) opened competitive bidding on their Web site, http://www.auctionrp.com.

The agency is selling the land where its headquarters sits and moving its facilities to a new location along Barclay Drive.

There are two lots of land, to be sold as one parcel. The first is called the "Triangle Lot," 14.82 acres bordered by Highway 20 on the northeast, Hood Avenue to the west, and Highway 242 (McKenzie Highway) on the south.

This parcel contains the East Portal Interpretive Site for the McKenzie/Santiam State Scenic Byway. There's also a restroom, kiosk and interpretive panels. The kiosk and interpretive panels will be relocated to the new ranger station to be built on the north side of Barclay Drive next spring.

The second lot, referred to as "The South Barclay Lot" is 47.64 acres, bordered by Highway 20 to the south and west, Barclay Avenue to the north, and Pine Street to the east. This parcel contains 19 U.S. Forest Service structures and has 5.06 acres within the Pine Street and Barclay Avenue right-of-way.

The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) will vacate the six acres they currently occupy on the second lot once the sale is complete.

The minimum (starting) bid price of the parcel is $14 million. Bidders are required to provide a down payment of $200,000.

"Basically, the minimum bid price is based on what it's going to cost us to build and move into our new office just north of our present site," said Rod Bonacker, Special Projects Coordinator with the Sisters Ranger District, who has been shepherding the sale for the past couple of years.

The USFS also hopes the final sale price will allow them to contribute to the "kitty" of new funds needed for the Bend-Fort Rock District's new construction projects.

The auction will run at least through the first part of August.

"The GSA will make a decision then, based on activity, about whether to continue the bidding or not. If it's going strong they'll extend it in 72-hour cycles, then announce a closing date when the activity slows," said Bonacker.

Once a winning bidder is named, that bidder has 45 days from the bid close to come up with the funds.

The USFS anticipates, given the current real estate market, prospective bidders will be playing a cat-and-mouse game with the bidding.

"My guess is that not much will happen for a couple of weeks, then someone will break the ice," Bonacker said.

The City of Sisters has had discussions with some potential bidders about their plans for the property. There has been a high level of interest in the community about the future uses of the property.

The current zoning for the parcel is Public Facilities and Landscape Management. The city will require that any prospective zoning change and development proposal meet certain criteria. All proposals must demonstrate they have maximized both efficiency and quality in urban design and comply with the city's Western theme and design standards.

The sale agreement contains a clause allowing the present USFS facilities to be occupied for up to a year-and-a-half from closing, if necessary. This will allow plenty of time for construction, and moving equipment and staff.

The new USFS facilities will be located on about 16 acres on the north side of Barclay Drive, bordered to the east by North Pine Street. The new "Craftsman style" administrative building will be approximately 11,200 square feet.

The agency put a lot of effort into creating a public-friendly design.

"Money was really spent in the reception area; we wanted that area to really look nice," said Bonacker.

The administrative building was designed to meet the Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED) Gold Certification, the second-highest level attainable. SERA, a Portland-based architectural firm, is responsible for the new design.

Other new buildings include a 2,300-square-foot housing barracks, a 5,193-square-foot storage building, and a 9,494-square-foot engine bay/tree "cooler" for new saplings. Total square footage for all buildings totals 28,187.

"Optimistically we could break ground on our new complex later this year if the sale is completed this fall. But more likely we'll break ground next spring and move in during the fall of 2009," said Bonacker.

Both sale lots will be open for an "open house" inspection from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, July 12. Attendees are asked to register with Rod Bonacker prior to the open houses: (541) 549-7729 or e-mail [email protected]