Endowment land exchange approval creates larger ownership area

Saturday August 21, 2021

More timber sale revenue and a larger block of endowment land ownership comes with the exchange of endowment land for private land in North Central Idaho. See and download a picture of the future endowment land and a map of how the exchange will create a bigger block of continuous endowment land ownership.

In February 2020, the Idaho Department of Lands (IDL) received an application for a land exchange from the Lodge at Lolo Creek, LLC. The proposal was to exchange 629 acres of land the lodge owns near Weippe in Clearwater County for 568 acres of endowment land located 9 miles to the south in Idaho County. The State Board of Land Commissioners approved the exchange at this week’s Land Board meeting.

What endowment land is being exchanged? The endowment beneficiary in this case is Charitable Institutions and the land is primarily Douglas-fir and ponderosa pine. The land is not part of a larger block of endowment land.

What is the private land? The land consists of 629 contiguous acres located in
Clearwater County. It is comprised mainly of grand fir, Douglas-fir, and lodgepole pine.
What was done to make this a beneficial land exchange? Appraisals were completed by Gem Valley Appraisal Services. The appraisal showed the endowment land to be worth $1,012,000. The appraised value for the other property is $1,039,250.

Benefits of the exchange: The exchange will expand continuous endowment land acreage by replacing the remotely located, isolated endowment land with a parcel that blocks up a large area. This leads to increased management efficiency and better all-around access options to the existing endowment lands.

The exchanged land is also closer to lumber mills. Closer proximity to mills provides
lower haul costs, which increase timber revenues versus land with a longer haul.
The value of the exchanged property is $27,250 higher than the value of the endowment land. The owner intends to donate the difference in land values to the endowment beneficiary. The land exchange transaction will be closed in about a month.

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CONTACT: Robbie Johnson, Public Information Officer, Idaho Department of Lands
208-334-0236/ 208-908-1786
rjohnson@idl.idaho.gov