State
to buy N. Bass Island Ohio wants 667 acres to
be shielded as Lake Erie park or nature preserve James Drew
Toledo Blade
12/08/2002
COLUMBUS - The state plans to buy nearly all of North Bass
Island and protect it from development as part of the Lake
Erie Islands State Park system or as a nature preserve.
The state capital budget bill includes $6.8 million to buy
the land and Gov. Bob Taft is lining up the same amount
in federal funding.
"Opportunities to buy an island don’t come around every
day," said Jim Lynch, spokesman for the state Department
of Natural Resources. "Once this is gone, this is gone."
"It’s the last jewel of the lake that is undeveloped," said
longtime island resident Paul "Bud’’ Stonerook.
The state is negotiating with the island’s largest land
owner, Meier’s Wine Cellars - a division of Cleveland-based
Paramount Distillers, Inc. - to buy 667 acres. The land
includes 2.4 miles of lake frontage and 43 acres of natural
coastal wetland.
State officials say they will have a final appraisal by
early next year and hope to reach a deal within six months.
The island is about 748 acres, but the state doesn’t plan
to buy the roughly 12 private residences that total 20 acres,
the airstrip, church, and cemetery.
The chairman of Paramount Distillers, Inc. didn’t return
messages seeking comment yesterday.
George Weisenbach, a real estate appraiser who lives on
Middle Bass Island, said he believes Paramount Distillers
is selling because the "value of the real estate far exceeds
the ability of what return could be made" from the vineyard.
Mr. Weisenbach said Meier’s Wine Cellars would have tax
advantages in selling the land to the state.
Although most of North Bass Island would become a state
park or a nature preserve, the Department of Natural Resources
said the goal is to keep the land in its nearly pristine
condition.
"We might put in some primitive camping possibly, maybe
a hiking trail. It would be managed primarily for wildlife
habitats," Mr. Lynch said.
About 25 people live on North Bass Island, working at the
vineyard and at the airstrip that Put-in-Bay Township Port
Authority operates.
Three children attend the one-room schoolhouse on North
Bass Island: a fifth, sixth, and eighth grader. One student
from North Bass Island attends Put-in-Bay High School, and
a second attends Danbury High School in Marblehead.
Residents said they were glad to hear the news about the
state’s acquisition plans. It was unclear, however, what
will happen to those who live in homes that Meier’s Wine
Cellars owns.
"I would rather see the state buy it than have it developed
into condos," said Herma Dopps, the U.S. postmaster on North
Bass Island. "We don’t have any grocery stores. We have
a one-room schoolhouse. We have a church and the only thing
you can buy here is gasoline and postage stamps. It’s just
a great place to live. "
The land owned by Meier’s Wine Cellars includes about 300
acres of grapes. State officials said the fate of the vineyard
will be part of the negotiations.
One option would be for the state to lease the land back
to Meier’s Wine Cellars.
Mr. Stonerook, who was born on North Bass Island in 1943
and is the school treasurer, questioned whether Paramount
Distillers wants to get out of the wine business.
Mr. Stonerook said he hadn’t heard of any developer interest
in the island for at least five years. He expressed mixed
feelings about the state’s plans.
"If the state developed it as a state park, that would be
a good thing, because we’d get more ferry service. But it’s
also nice to look out your window and not see someone you
don’t know," Mr. Stonerook said.
Although the state is struggling with financial woes because
of the slumping economy, the Taft administration made buying
most of North Bass Island a priority.
The state Department of Natural Resources will receive $46
million in the two-year bricks-and-mortar capital budget,
compared to $113 million in the last two-year budget.
The addition of $6.8 million to buy North Bass Island land
didn’t come out of any other park projects, Mr. Lynch said.
Since the state has not bought the land, the capital budget
bill did not refer to North Bass Island. Instead, a summary
of the bill prepared by the state budget office referred
to $6.8 million for "land acquisition.’’
Mr. Lynch said he didn’t know if the state had any competitors
for purchasing the land.
If the state can complete a purchase agreement, North Bass
would join state parks on Kelleys Island, South Bass Island,
Middle Bass Island, and Catawba Island.
Two years ago, the state announced it would buy the old
Lonz Winery on Middle Bass Island and turn it into a state
park. The state spent $6.75 million for 123 acres on the
south end of Middle Bass. The Senate on Tuesday is expected
to approve the capital budget bill, which includes $3.8
million for Middle Bass Island State Park.
The state plans to use the funds to improve and expand the
marina, shore up sea walls, do some dredging, build restroom
facilities, and water and sewage systems, Mr. Lynch said.
It’s unclear whether the state would designate North Bass
Island as a state park or a nature preserve.
"North Bass fits in with our state park system. First, we
need to go forth and get to our goal to preserve this undeveloped
island," he said.
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