Land Board OKs endowment purchase of Fish & Game land near St. Maries

Here’s a news item from the Associated Press: BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho officials moved forward Tuesday with their plan to add more forests to state endowment lands. The Idaho Land Board voted to consider buying about 1,400 acres in northern Idaho near St. Maries from the Idaho Department of Fish and Game. The land has an appraised value of $4.6 million.  The unanimous vote by the five-member board is part of the board’s new strategic reinvestment plan to use about $160 million from commercial real estate and residential cottage site sales to buy timberland and agricultural land. The vote Tuesday directs the Idaho Department of Lands to pursue buying the land that has been on Fish and Game’s surplus list since 1990. The board also directed the department to hire an independent timberland adviser to analyze the possible purchase.

State Lands Department Director Tom Schultz said of the Benewah County land purchase, “Keeping the lands in state ownership not only would generate more money for Idaho public schools through sustainable timber management, but also would allow for continued access for sportsmen and other recreationists.”

Virgil Moore, Idaho Fish & Game director, said, “The Fish and Game Commission views the potential purchase as a win-win for Idaho citizens. The property would continue to provide wildlife habitat and public access under IDL ownership and management, and the Fish and Game Commission would use the funding derived from its sale to protect priority habitats and public access they have identified.”