City Manager and council discuss issues about Haymaker Forest

MORGANTOWN — When asked if committing to the $5.2 million purchase of 40 wooded acres known as Haymaker Forest without knowing where all the money will come from is an irresponsible use of taxpayer money, City Manager Paul Brake gives a one-word answer.
“No.”
The proposed acquisition has become a topic of conversation and debate since it was unveiled in a May 31 press release disseminated along with the latest council agenda. On June 5, council voted 6-1 on the first of two readings to approve the purchase. Councilor Ron Dulaney voted in the minority.
Haymaker Forest is situated along the municipal boundary, partially located in the city’s 2nd Ward, but mostly falling in the county. It borders the city’s 1st and 6th wards — largely between Courtney Avenue and Southpointe Circle on one side, Dorsey Avenue and Rosemary Drive on the other and East Oak Grove Cemetery to the south.
Brake said the offer is time sensitive, but isn’t being rushed. He cites discussions with and between the West Virginia Land Trust and the Mon Valley Green Space Coalition as well as the city’s 2013 comprehensive plan, which calls for the preservation of such properties in pursuit of greenspace connections.
Further, the forest was and has been referenced regularly since the lead-up to the last city council election — particularly by Deputy Mayor and 6th Ward representative Mark Brazaitis.
Even so, when council cast its first vote in favor of buying the land, it did so without a current appraisal — which Brake says will be in place by the June 19 public hearing and second reading.
The county assessor’s office has the property valued at a quarter of the asking price, $1,288,300.
Brake said he’s more interested in seeing what the appraisal has to say, explaining there can be a lag in keeping property values updated.
“I don’t take that as the absolute value. Is it a critical piece of information? Sure,” he said of the assessor’s numbers. “But I would say go on a real estate website and see what land is going for. … Land is very, very expensive.”
The seller, according to the city’s sales agreement, is ALP Inc. The West Virginia Secretary of State’s office lists Theresa Angotti, Donald Lazzelle Jr. and James Prete as the business’ officers.
If the city isn’t willing to move now and under these circumstances, Brake explained, it could miss the opportunity to secure this coveted swath of land.
“I’ve heard people say, ‘Couldn’t you ask the seller to delay this for six months?’ The simple answer is, no. If we ask that, there’s a chance the seller will say, ‘No, we plan on developing the property. Thank you very much.’ ”
When asked if attempting to negotiate on the cost would push the seller from the table, he explained, “That is potentially what could be the outcome.”
“This has come along. It’s been brought to our attention that this property is available and if it’s something we’re interested in doing, then we need to pursue this,” Brake said. “If there are misgivings or a persuasion one way or another and we decide to pass on it, then we brought it up and really explored it.”
According to the purchase agreement, the city would need to provide a $250,000 deposit within two days of executing the agreement. The first $500,000 payment would be due at closing.
Payments of $500,000 would then be due every few months — Oct. 1, Jan. 1, April 1, July 1.
While Brake has explained the city is about to pay off the Public Safety Building, freeing up $263,268 annually to help fund the purchase, the primary funding mechanism discussed has been a dedicated tax levy to be placed on the ballot in the April 2019 municipal election.
Based on the payment schedule, the city will have paid $2.25 million before the issue would go before the voters.
The purchase would go hand-in-hand with the creation of a land use/development program driven by local experts that would inform the city’s use and acquisition of greenspace like the forest. Before that, however, it will need to make its case to the citizenry.
“It’s important that we gain the voters’ support. We probably could just unilaterally do this, cover the cost of it, but I think it’s important to have that level of engagement and talk about, not only Haymaker, but other potential greenspace that we could add to our greenspace portfolio,” Brake said, explaining that he’s seen these programs work in previous jobs and he’s fully in support of moving forward.
“[Haymaker Forest] adds to neighborhood preservation. It provides recreation opportunities. It provides a buffer for stormwater management. There’s a lot of reasons I can come up with to demonstrate this provides a pubic good that’s associated with that value,” Brake said, adding, “I’ve given this my professional recommendation. I think it’s in our best interest as a community.”
While no specific plans have been detailed, it has been suggested that the property would be largely preserved, with the possible exception of trails, and would not be an “active recreation” site, like a city park, or fall under the direction of BOPARC.
Because the land would be city property, the annexation process would be internal, through city council.