Luzerne County advancing long-discussed idea of selling unused land in Butler Township

Luzerne County Council’s 2023 budget advances a plan to potentially sell prime vacant parcels the county owns in Butler Township.

County officials have periodically suggested selling the land for many years to bring in revenue and boost the tax base.

Councilwoman LeeAnn McDermott, who chairs council’s real estate committee, said no action can be taken on seeking buyers until the county completes a survey and subdivision.

At her urging, council agreed to keep funds in the engineering department budget to complete both.

County Engineer Lawrence Plesh estimates approximately $100,000 will be needed for the survey and subdivision.

The survey will verify and mark the boundary lines of the county land and should be completed around June, with a subdivision following two months or so later, he said.

“So toward the latter part of next year, the county could put a bid out for that property,” Plesh said last week. “It’s a very big parcel.”

In total, the county owns approximately 530 acres in the township that must be surveyed.

The land is in the county’s hands because it operated the Kis-Lyn work camp for juvenile delinquents from 1912 to 1965.

Two sections cannot be sold and must be sectioned out because the county is locked into long-term leases for a youth music camp (17.8 acres) and the Keystone Job Corps Center, which operates a federally funded, residential educational/vocational program on 122.9 acres, McDermott said.

That leaves 389 acres to sell, she said.

While a large portion is considered undevelopable, county officials are confident there is significant value in at least 146.5 acres that had been leased out for farming until a few years ago, when the county received no proposals to use the tracts for agricultural purposes, McDermott said.

McDermott told her council colleagues the 146.5 acres were collectively appraised at $867,000 in 2018, and she expects the value is higher today, possibly $1 million.

The land is in three sections, including one along Lions Drive and another off West Foothills Drive, a map shows. The tracts are 35.4, 42.1 and 69 acres, she said.

Most of the county land is in an urban residential district zone, with the exception of land around the Keystone Job Corps falling in a special purpose district, she said.

“It could be a moneymaker for the county if we could get that farmland back on the tax rolls with residential houses on it,” Plesh told council during his budget presentation.

McDermott said her committee was created to identify and recommend the sale of unused property, and she supports that mission.

She said the township has adequate sewage capacity for new development and noted the sale would help fill a need for more housing in the county while boosting revenue for taxing bodies.

“It is county property just sitting there. Why hold on to it?” McDermott said.

Township Supervisor Vice Chairman Michael Reich said he has discussed the sale idea with McDermott and has mixed views.

He said he supports the county’s efforts to sell unused property so it can return to the tax rolls and increase real estate tax revenue.

However, Reich said he repeatedly hears from township residents concerned that more development will impact their well water, cause more traffic and negatively impact their quality of life.

“In the township, we’re already under development pressure, and people want to keep things basically the way they are,” Reich said. “We don’t want to become an overdeveloped mess.”

Land zoned urban residential also could permit high-density housing units, which are not supported by most residents, he said. Township officials are trying to limit such units to land along Route 309 “to preserve the character of our neighborhoods,” he said. Although the preference of most residents would be no new development, he believes single family homes would be more palatable than high-density units.

“I like what the county is trying to do to get property off its inventory, but we have to proceed with caution,” Reich said.

Acid mine

There’s also interest in a portion of the county land for a plant to treat pollution from the Jeddo Mine Drainage Tunnel, said McDermott and other county officials.

This land is not within the 146.5 acres appraised at $867,000 in 2018, McDermott said.

County Operational Services Division Head Greg Kurtz briefed council on the possibility during budget discussions, saying the state Department of Environmental Protection is working on cleaning up mine drainage in that area.

Several council members told Kurtz they would prefer a lease for a pollution reduction project so the county would receive recurring revenue instead of a one-time payment.

Kurtz said a lease is a strong possibility and added he also is looking into a hydro-electric system that could generate electricity for nearby facilities and consistent revenue for the county.

“It’s a substantial amount of mine drainage water,” Kurtz told council. “It’s all new and fresh, so more to come on that. It’s kind of exciting that we’re right in that position to be able to be a part of that.”

According to information McDermott received, the Jeddo Mine Drainage Tunnel discharges acid mine water from Hazleton area mines into the Little Nescopeck Creek, polluting the creek and, eventually, the Susquehanna River and Chesapeake Bay, with iron, manganese and aluminum.

McDermott said a pollution reduction project that also generates revenue for the county could have wide appeal.

“Something we all want to do is clean up that water,” she said.

Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.