Friends of Historic Glasgow (Delaware)

NCCo decides $12 million too much for 236-acre property 9/21/04

News Journal article

NCCo decides $12 million too much for 236-acre property in Glasgow

Owning family will meet today

By MICHELE BESSO
The News Journal
09/21/2004

Concerned about the price tag, New Castle County Council members on Monday refused to pay $12 million to buy 236 acres in Glasgow.

The county hopes to continue to negotiate on the price with the four Barczewski family members who own the property across from the 300-acre regional park under construction at U.S. 40 and Del. 896, councilwoman Karen Venezky said.

The family had given the county until Monday to make a deal. Otherwise, the county risked losing it to other potential buyers who offered more. Family members will meet today to decide what to do next.

The Barczewskis rejected the county's $9.6 million offer in April to buy the residentially zoned land north of U.S. 40 and west of Del. 896.

The family wants the county to pay $12 million.

The Christina School District has expressed interest in using 50 acres to build a school on the site, Venezky said. The district could offer $2.3 million to help defray the county's cost, she said.

But at County Council's finance committee meeting Monday, there were not enough votes to purchase the property. Some council members said they were concerned about the price tag and how the county would pay for it. Others questioned how much of the property could be developed, since about 135 acres is wooded.

"Open space is a priority, but the issue we still need to deal with is whether we can afford to spend $12 million on a park next to another park we just spent $15 million on," councilman Robert Weiner said. "What's going to be in the till? My concern is we will be in big trouble."

Council President Chris Coons said he hadn't seen a long-term plan for the property or how it would be maintained.

"If we buy some of the parcel today that is historic and pay a substantial amount ... and develop a plan for what to do with the rest of the land, I'm comfortable," he said. "But all or nothing for $12 million, I have to say no."

Anne Barczewski, the family matriarch who is in a nursing home, her two sons and a daughter all have an equal stake in the sale of the property. They disagree over whether to develop the land or keep it as open space, family members said.

At least two of the four family members said Monday they were not interested in an interim offer and wanted to move immediately with an offer on the table. They have been offered as much as $16 million, said David Ferry, an attorney for two of the four family members.

The family and their lawyers will meet today to consider the offers, said Tom Posatko, Anne Barczewski's lawyer. He said he hoped the family would not deadlock.

"I would like to see a solution where everybody wins, including Anne Barczewski and her desire to preserve all or some of the property," Posatko said. "Whether I can convince the other parties, I don't know. I hope I can persuade them to wait long enough to give the county a chance."

The family must vote 3 to 1 on any decision about the property, Ferry said.

The Barczewski property is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and dates to the 1700s. The property contains a main house known as "La Grange" that dates to the 1800s, a small cottage and several smaller buildings.

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