Deal averts bid war for camp

Saturday, May 12, 2001

By LAURA FASBACH
Staff Writer

Bergen County and a Jewish community group have agreed to jointly offer $5 million for the historic Camp Glen Gray in Mahwah, avoiding a bidding war over the hundreds of acres of undeveloped land.

Boy Scout officials are expected to decide Tuesday whether to accept the bid for the nation's oldest continuously operating Scout camp -- 750 rugged acres that housing developers have been eyeing as a gold mine.

Under an agreement reached this week, the county would share the cost of the land with the Bergen County Y, a Jewish Community Center, which plans to operate its youth camping program at the site of the 85-year-old Glen Gray.

County Executive William "Pat" Schuber, in announcing the plan Friday, said the agreement would preserve much-needed open space in the county while allowing the YJCC to operate its camp on a portion of the land that's already home to log cabins and lean-tos.

"We would've gotten into a bidding war even though we had the same vision in mind," Schuber said. "It unites everybody who had the same goal."

Before the county and the Washington Township-based YJCC joined forces, the county had offered $4 million to buy Camp Glen Gray. Last week the county matched the YJCC's offer of $5 million, Schuber said.

Although the exact details of the new collaboration haven't been ironed out, Schuber said the county will likely take control of 650 acres, leaving about 100 acres that include the campground to the YJCC.

"The vast bulk of the property would be entirely the county's," Schuber said. It would be open to county residents for hiking and other outdoor activities.

John Schepisi, an Englewood Cliffs attorney representing the YJCC, said the division of the cost between his clients and the county will depend on the number of acres each ultimately acquires.

"We're all looking very enthusiastically upon this," Schepisi said. "It's a win-win for everybody."

If the Northern New Jersey Council of the Boy Scouts accepts the offer Tuesday, the deal could move forward in the next few weeks, county officials said.

"It's not a done deal until the Boy Scouts say it's done," Schuber said.

John Malone, Scout executive for the Northern New Jersey Council in Oakland, said the members are weighing the offer.

"Between now and Tuesday, they are digesting what's been put before them in terms of an offer," Malone said. "Most importantly, we just want to be fair to the community." Glen Gray is the largest privately owned piece of open space left in Bergen County. The Scouts put the camp on the block in January, arguing that it had become expendable and too expensive to maintain.

A Scout council resolution said the land should be sold only for open space. But developers entered the picture, offering up to $7.5 million for the right to build "mini-estates" on top of Mahwah's foothills.

Trust for Public Land, a non-profit group working with the county to purchase the land, looked favorably on the latest agreement with the YJCC. Purchasing the Scout camp is vital to protecting other parks and forests in the belt of green space from Northern New Jersey into upstate New York, the trust has said.

"If this offer is accepted, it will serve a lot of different purposes," said Terrence Nolan, project manager for the Trust for Public Land. The organization said it is working on securing funding from a variety of sources to contribute to the county's portion of the purchase.

Schuber said the county plans to fund the purchase through its Open Space, Recreation and Farmland and Historic Preservation Trust Fund, which was created in 1999. The county also would seek a matching grant from the state's Green Acres program.

It's uncertain what the new venture means for the Friends of Glen Gray (FOGG), a group of former Scouts and scoutmasters who want to buy part of the property for Scouting. They have set a goal of raising $1 million and want to join forces with the county to ensure that at least 100 acres of core campground remain for Scouting.

John Hartinger, a FOGG executive, said he knew of the county's combined bid with the YJCC but didn't know the specifics of the agreement.

Hartinger said FOGG is still trying to work out a deal with the county. "We would welcome an opportunity to work collaboratively in order to preserve Camp Glen Gray as a historic Scout camp," he said.

On Friday, Schuber said the county is willing to listen to members of FOGG to determine if they can be part of the equation.

"We're intrigued to see if they have any finances," Schuber said.

Staff Writer Laura Fasbach's e-mail address is fasbach@northjersey.com. Staff Writers Brian Aberback and Alex Nussbaum contributed to this report.