Milton close to finalizing $1M Boyhaven deal
MILTON, N.Y. » Town officials hope to finalize the $1 million purchase of former Boyhaven scout camp this month, but Supervisor Scott Ostrander says it won’t happen until he’s thoroughly reviewed all documents.
Last summer, Twin Rivers Council-Boy Scouts of America selected the town of Milton as the preferred buyer for the 300-acre property between Middle Grove Road and Route 29.
The camp, which closed last fall after nearly a century of use, has a lake, athletic fields, a large dining hall and dozens of smaller buildings. The town is primarily interested in the 50-acre section where scouting activities took place, envisioning recreational opportunities for local residents such as fishing, hiking and cross-country skiing.
“I’ll be the one signing the paper work,” Ostrander said Wednesday. “I want to make sure everything is right before we move forward on it. Even if we do buy it, it’s probably going to be locked up for a year or two before we decide what to do with it. Some buildings have to be torn down.”
“Everything revolves around money,” he said. “Our financial status is not that great right now.”
Town residents were hit with a substantial tax hike recently.
A decision on buying the property is ultimately up to the Town Board.
“I’m really hoping they get it wrapped up,” said town Planning Board Chairman Larry Woolbright, who has worked extensively on the project. “They’re (Twin Rivers) pushing us to get it done by the
end of this month. I’m hoping the (town) board will do that.”
The deal was supposed to be finalized by the end of 2017, but Boy Scout officials gave the town extension because Ostrander didn’t take office until Jan. 1, when he succeeded former long-time Supervisor Dan Lewza.
About 10 different parties including builders, developers and real estate firms submitted bids for the camp.
The town submitted a $500,00 bid, an amount donated by an anonymous source. Plans call for bonding another $500,000.
The town issued a bonding request for proposals and has received responses, which town Attorney James Craig is in the process of reviewing.
When considering potential buyers, Boy Scout officials placed a high priority on keeping the land free from development, one of the main reasons the town was selected.
“The board decided local stewardship and having the land be a public park was overall the best situation,” Twin Rivers Council President Richard Stockton said last summer. The state Department of Environmental Conservation has expressed interest in buying 250 acres of wooded camp property, which would be added to the nearby Middle Grove State Forest. Kayaderosseras Creek runs through the Boyhaven property.
But Ostrander said Milton can’t negotiate with the DEC until the purchase from Twin Rivers is finalized.
Some residents support selling a portion of land to DEC for the revenue it would generate, while others say the town should maintain complete control of the camp. With or without DEC’s involvement, after buying Boyhaven, the town has to decide how to use it.
When submitting its bid for Boyhaven, the town indicated that all of 2018 and early 2019 would be used for planning purposes, with a goal of allowing the first public recreational uses in summer 2019. But Woolbright said there’s no reason trails on the property couldn’t be used next winter, while plans for summer take shape.
Although founded in 1924, since 1991 the camp was only used for Cub Scout and Webelo programs, not Boy Scouts. Overnight outings were discontinued following the 2015 season. For the past two years it had only been for used for day programs.
Competition from more conveniently located townand city-run day camps and recreation programs took its toll on Boyhaven.
With proceeds from sale of the property, Twin Rivers Council plans improve two other scout sites, Camp Wokpominee on the east side of Lake George in Fort Ann, and Rotary Scout Reservation in Poestenkill.