BELLINGHAM, WA- Those who follow @GlobeStcom on Twitter and @GlobeStLIVE may have seen a post teasing the announcement, but GlobeSt.com has learned that in what is said to be one of the largest single land purchases by a state in the Pacific Northwest, American Forest Holdings LLC recently sold 51,000 acres of timberland to the state of Washington for $97 million. “This deal preserves a significant river and forest ecosystem from the threat of future development and is a critical component of the State's Yakima River Basin plan to enhance the supply of water to Eastern Washington,” says Les Jacobowitz, a finance partner at Arent Fox LLP, who advised the locally based company in the transaction.
“The community forest initiative keeps the land viable for recreation and wildlife conservation as well as appropriate timber harvesting to generate income for the State as well as to manage fire and infestation risk,” adds Jacobowitz.
The transaction required three years of negotiation and the support of the Yakama Indian Nation, environmental groups led by Forterra, state legislators, the Governor and three state agencies (Department of Ecology, Department of Natural Resources and Department of Fish & Wildlife), adds Jacobowitz.
The newly purchased tract becomes the state's first community forest, part of a five-year-old initiative of the Washington State Department of Natural Resources that gives area communities a say in forest recreation, water quality and natural resource management, wildlife conservation, and timber harvesting.
The American Forest Holdings sale of the timber forest that surrounds a portion of the Teanaway River and a number of its tributaries north of the town of Cle Elum is essential to realizing the state's $5 billion Yakima River Basin plan, an ongoing project to preserve water supply and wildlife vitality in the eastern part of the state. Coastal Washington receives substantially more rainfall than the east, where water demand typically outstrips supply.
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Natalie Dolce
Natalie Dolce, editor-in-chief of GlobeSt.com and GlobeSt. Real Estate Forum, is responsible for working with editorial staff, freelancers and senior management to help plan the overarching vision that encompasses GlobeSt.com, including short-term and long-term goals for the website, how content integrates through the company’s other product lines and the overall quality of content. Previously she served as national executive editor and editor of the West Coast region for GlobeSt.com and Real Estate Forum, and was responsible for coverage of news and information pertaining to that vital real estate region. Prior to moving out to the Southern California office, she was Northeast bureau chief, covering New York City for GlobeSt.com. Her background includes a stint at InStyle Magazine, and as managing editor with New York Press, an alternative weekly New York City paper. In her career, she has also covered a variety of beats for M magazine, Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel, FashionLedge.com, and Co-Ed magazine. Dolce has also freelanced for a number of publications, including MSNBC.com and Museums New York magazine.
