The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is considering the purchase of 120 acres of private land adjacent to the boundaries of Judge Magney State Park.
Over 85% of Cook County’s land is government owned, and that percentage may be going up just a little.
On Tuesday, November 17, 2009, the county board voted unanimously to support the addition of 120 acres of private land to the boundaries of Judge C.R. Magney State Park (Commissioner Jim Johnson was absent).
Tom Kurschner has offered to sell his property at the northwest corner of the park. The assessed value is $204,000. Kurschner’s current taxes are $732, but if the land were purchased at its assessed value, the state would pay $1,530 each year as payment in lieu of taxes (3/4 of 1% of the acquired value of the land).
Three DNR employees attended the meeting, Mark Kovacovich of the Two Harbors office, DNR real estate coordinator Teresa Thews of the St. Paul office, and park manager Tom Ludwig. They handed out a document that states, “The Minnesota County Biological Survey (MCBS) has identified approximately half of the property as a site of outstanding biodiversity significance, the highest ranking option by the DNR Division of Ecological Resources MCBS program.” Biodiversity ranking is based on the presence of rare species, size and condition of native plant communities, and how much high-ecologicalquality land is in the surrounding area.
Kurschner’s land contains about two-thirds of a mile of a designated trout stream that empties into the Brule River. Most of the northern half of the property “would likely be considered wetlands (streams, beaver ponds and wet forest),” the document states, and a bluff runs along the southern portion of the property. “The addition of these three forties would contribute to the protection of the Brule River and tributaries, the biological diversity of the area, and view sheds of the forest and river already associated with Judge Magney State Park,” the document goes on to say.
Teresa Thews said the legislature would need to approve purchase of the land, which the DNR will pursue next year if it can find the money. Kurschner is free to sell the property to another buyer before then, however. An appraisal would need to be conducted, and the state could pay up to 10% more than the market value established by that appraisal.
Commissioner Bob Fenwick informed the state employees that last week the county board approved a survey of the entire area in order to correct serious boundary problems. Thesurvey is expected to show significant differences between descriptions on property deeds and actual real estate.
Kovacovich commented on what county surveyor Wayne Hensche said at last week’s county board meeting about having been unsuccessful in getting funding from the DNR for the survey. He did not know who at the DNR Hensche had approached and could not commit funding immediately but said he thinks it “would not be unreasonable to contribute funding.”
Commissioner Bruce Martinson said he believes Kurschner should pay for the appraisal if the DNR pursues the sale.
The board’s motion to support the expansion of the park included an expectation that boundary issues would be discussed after the survey is conducted this next year.
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