UPPER FREEHOLD — The township will have an additional $680,000 in its coffers to pay the debt service on open space or preserved farmlands, or for additional land acquisition.
The money comes from the sale of a 53- acre property on Wygant Road, according to Township Administrator Barbara Bascom.
In late 2004, the township acquired the acreage, known as the Hudler property, in two parcels. The 30-acre parcel is across the street from the 53-acre parcel and was purchased for township recreational use.
At that time, then-Mayor John Mele said the township would enter the 53-acre portion of the tract into the state Farmland Preservation Program. With the help of the State Agricultural Development Committee (SADC), the property would then be auctioned off to someone who wishes to farm the land, Mele had said.
Although it took four years, that auction took place on Jan. 30 at the municipal building.
Committeeman Bob Faber said the room was packed and there were 17 registered bidders. He estimated that about half of the bidders were township residents. The opening bid started at $400,000 and progressed in increments of $50,000, then $25,000 and then $10,000 until the auctioneer declared the land sold to township resident Henry Meyers of Harvey Road. With the 10 percent buyer’s premium due the Max Spann Real Estate & Auction Co., which handled the auction, the total amount paid by Meyers is $748,000.
At the Feb. 5 Township Committee meeting, a resolution awarding the contract to Meyers was unanimously passed. Under SADC rules, the acreage could have a building lot for one single-family dwelling, and a 1-acre building lot was specified on the property.
Faber asked what would happen if that lot did not “perc” for a septic (a test done to determine whether the soil is sufficiently porous to enable a septic system leach field to function properly). Township Attorney Granville Michael Magee said all bidders were told to do their due diligence prior to bidding on the property. All bidders saw the contract prior to the auction, he said.
Mayor Steve Alexander said that under SADC restrictions, that particular lot is the only area where a primary residence could be constructed. Bascom said the township tried to get a “floating” lot approved by the SADC, but they would not permit it.
Township Attorney Granville Magee said none of this was an issue. “We had an auction, the person bid. It’s all spelled out,” he said.