Land buyers wait on Wildish for sale.

Byline: Jeff Wright The Register-Guard

Two nonprofit groups intent on buying and preserving 1,400 acres owned by Wildish Land Co. next to the Howard Buford Recreation Area south of Springfield say it appears that negotiations have stalled.

A nonprofit foundation established by executives of the Eugene-based development firm Arlie & Co. has offered to help the Friends of Buford Park and Mount Pisgah buy the valued riverfront acreage for public use.

The foundation has asked Eugene-based Wildish to name a price for the land by Sept. 8 - and has been told it will be at least "a month or two" before Wildish will do so, said Chris Orsinger, Friends of Buford Park executive director.

Wildish officials "have said they're willing to give us an opportunity to acquire the land, and the Arlie Foundation has the resources to write a check," Orsinger said. "So let's stay at the table and keep talking. Why the delay? We're ready."

Sadie Dressekie, marketing director for Arlie & Co., echoed Orsinger's view. "We've not been told why there's been a delay, but there has been," she said. "Things have slowed down."

However, Randy Hledik, Wildish's director of general services, said negotiations are proceeding in a timely manner.

"This is a big transaction for us, and it requires a considerable amount of due diligence," he said. "An artificial timeline is just not approp- riate."

The land in question is bounded to the north by the Middle Fork of the Willamette River and to the south by Buford Park. In a Measure 37 claim it filed in June, Wildish outlined a plan to build homes on the 1,400 acres. Under Measure 37, property owners whose land has been devalued by government restrictions can seek to have the restrictions waived or be paid compen- sation.

The Wildish land lies outside the Eugene-Springfield urban growth boundary and is zoned for mining, forestry and agriculture.

Lane County faces a December deadline to rule on Wildish's claim for $15 million in compensation.

Orsinger and Dressekie said it's in the public's interest that a purchase be brokered before then.

But Hledik said Wildish might sell the property either before or after the ruling.

Hledik said Wildish has received inquiries from other "serious parties" other than Friends of Buford, and has not prioritized the offers. However, he said, "the Wildishes are still very cognizant of the community interest in preserving this land as a public park, and that is still at the forefront of our discussions."

Dressekie said the Arlie Musumeci Family Foundation agreed to play a role in the belief that all parties were committed to a prompt resolution. The foundation might need to reassess its role if that sense of urgency is absent, she said.

The back-and-forth comes one day after the Lane County Board of Commissioners designated Commissioner Faye Stewart to serve as its liaison in pursuing a resolution between Wildish and Friends of Buford Park. Stewart was unavailable for comment Thursday. His appointment is not intended to move the county toward consideration of eminent domain of the Wildish property, several commissioners said.

Commissioner Peter Sorenson said Thursday that he doesn't know if the characterization of "stalled" negotiations is accurate. "I'm more concerned with what resources the public and private sectors can pull together to properly acquire this property," he said.