Hubbard County Administrator Jeff Cadwell identified three areas of county-owned, tax-forfeited land (TFL) – all in Farden Township – ideal for housing or economic development.
The Hubbard County Board discussed the opportunities at their Tuesday, March 12 meeting.
Possible housing developments
Four TFL parcels are along 307th Avenue and north of U.S. Hwy. 2, where there’s already residential development in this area, Cadwell said.
“They’d be relatively easy to plat and make available for sale and development,” he continued. “We’ve had conversations with some realtors and people who think there’s an interest in building in this area. The proximity from here to Cass Lake is five miles and to Bemidji is six or seven miles. There’s an opportunity to make this happen pretty quickly.”
Three of the parcels are around 41 acres, the other is 80 acres.
Board chair Char Christenson noted that many cities include green space. She wondered if the area would be conducive to a developer making a walking path.
“Possibly,” Cadwell replied. “Where would it go? It wouldn’t connect to anything else.”
Another 80-acre parcel (07.03.04050) is outside the shoreland impact zone, he added.
“Farden Township does not have zoning of their own, which means we’re at 98,000 square feet for a lot, which is 2.25 acres. So these are going to be pretty low density” with private wells and private septic systems, Cadwell said.
There are also four TFL parcels along the west side of Midge Lake with potential for housing development, according to Cadwell. These are 34, 43, 40 and 47.5 acres.
Cadwell said he walked the area himself. “The land is relatively flat. There’s probably a 5- to 10-foot drop down to the lake. It’s nice shoreline. It’s a shallow lake, but it is a recreational lake.”
Waterlily Trail is “basically a snowmobile path that feeds through there.”
He speculated that neighbors would appreciate having a better road, if the area is developed.
Christenson asked how many lots could be built here.
“Within shoreland, we need 80,000 or 40,000 (square feet), so we can actually be a little more dense on the front lots. I think you need 150-foot frontage, so there’s actually room for quite a number of parcels along here,” Cadwell replied, estimating they will be the same number as those along 307th Avenue.
Potential industrial park near Farris
Cadwell directed the board’s attention to county-owned TFL along 500th Street, between Farris Park and the Farris Cemetery.
“Ideally, we’d want to do this right by the railroad track and the highway,” he said, however, after the intersection of Bowman Lake and Tower roads, the first half-mile is within the boundaries of the Leech Lake Reservation.
“That becomes potentially problematic,” Cadwell said.
Two parcels north of 500th Street are also county TFL, “but they are completely forested.”
Following conversations with Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development and Minnkota Power Cooperative, Cadwell said, “What we’re hearing is there’s a need for larger parcels. The way to get to larger parcels is to go a little bit further west.”
South of Midge Lake, there are four contiguous 40-acre TFLs, another 40-acre parcel, plus roughly 82 acres that straddle the rail corridor, he explained.
Those roughly 280 acres are developable that are 2 to 3 miles off U.S. Hwy. 2.
Cadwell said there is interest.
In order to market to an investor, Chadwell said they need something “shovel-ready.”
He recommended additional research into this area.
“What we’re talking about is needing to get some survey work done. You can see a lot of rail corridor through here, old pipeline going through here, utilities,” he explained. An opinion is needed regarding limits to development, such as crossing the railway and respecting easements.
Cadwell and county commissioner Ted Van Kempen plan to visit with the Farden Township Board.
