Selling off camps

[jeffrey]

Is your council selling off camps?

What's up with eliminating high adventure camps?
Is it a directive from national?
Why is it done so secretly and behind closed doors?
Why aren't scouts allowed to buy the camps?

[RMM]

It seems there is more to the question that has not been shared. Would you care to elaborate on the question?

[Quailman]

My council just sold a local camp. It had been a camp for over 50 years. It's right along the interstate from Houston to Dallas, and the loop highway around an outlying Houston suburb. You could hear traffic all night. It was also in high demand from developers. They sold it and acquired a property farther out along a county road. It is bordered on three sides by national forest land.

So yeah, we sold one, but I think this one will be better. Did I mention the sewer line that cuts through the old camp? It broke in March of 2012, delivering half a million gallons of "domestic sewage" onto the ground. The Cub Scout area has been closed since then.

[Mrw]

Greater Cleveland sold a canoe base in Canada a year or two ago. It was 10 acres of land and needed significant and costly sewer installations to remain in use.

Much as we hate to see things like that happen, there was no real reason to keep the land after they could not afford the government required upgrades. Passing the cost on to those who participated in programming there would have made the programs too expensive to run.

Another neighboring council recently sold one of their three camps as parkland. Again it was due to more needed upkeep than the camp fees could possibly support. Sometimes it makes sense to sell.

[jeffrey]

It seems there is more to the question that has not been shared. Would you care to elaborate on the question?

We had a 1000 acre camp donated to our council back in the late 1960's or early 70's. It was bordered on 3 sides by an Indian Reservation. There were another 100 acres scattered around the area. The farthest was about 50 acres 12 miles to the north. These out lying parcels were sold off.

About 15 years ago we were required to merge with another council. The council had 7 camps. The 2 camps that were run by volunteers have been sold off. The reason given was operating costs were too high for those camps. Volunteers did all of the work, erected buildings, plumbed and wired them according to code. We never charged scouts for the use of them. Once we merged, we were required to pay THEIR fees to use THEIR camp. It required $100 to open the front gate, and $2 per scout per night to use. Each building required a fee to open or make available, even though we continued to maintain the camp with volunteers.

The district's favorite camp still exists. They list it as a HIGH ADVENTURE camp. 600 acres. Paved trails, latrines with vending machines, catered meals, and tents set up for you.

One camp that was kept is less than 20 acres.

For this council, scouting ends at the city limits. Those troops that are 100-200 miles away are now forced to go elsewhere for camping. Most of them choose to go elsewhere.

The outgoing BSA head honcho sold the most of camp privately for a private hunting reservation. The new owner cut down walnut trees and sold them to a local mill to come up with the funds for the camp.

$1500 will now buy you the opportunity to shoot a deer in a bermed corral.

The remainder of the camp and all buildings were sold to a local farmer.

Our portion of the council wasn't informed of the decision to sell the camp until it was a done deal.

[wagionvigil]

You have a council commitee. I am sure there are members on that committee from you part of the council. The committee makes the decision not the council exec.i am in NR area 4 there were 10 councils two years ago. Now there are 8. The elephant in the area sucked up two and they are aiming for at least 3 more. Mine is one of them.the oldest up merged lodge still in existence, a camp that is open to the scouts when ever they want to use it in the off season etc. that will all be gone.

[mt_goodrich]

As much as I hate it, camps get sold for various reasons.

Here in the Longhorn Council, one very popular camp was sold a few years back. I was becoming too much of a liability to keep open because of the development all around it. It was getting crowded out. Another issue was people were coming onto the property and vandalizing and trashing the place.

[jeffrey]

Our camp that was sold was run strictly on a volunteer basis. The only expense involved were taxes. Scouts had free use of the camp year round.

Then we joined a different council. Scouts were charged a fee for entering the camp, use of any of the facilities. Those fees went into the general fund.

The council's 'preferred camp' was the benefactor of the funds. Nothing at their camp was done with volunteers. It all had to be contracted out. They even have the meals catered, and the tents set up for the campers when they arrive.

[Reasonable Rascal]

The council's 'preferred camp' was the benefactor of the funds. Nothing at their camp was done with volunteers. It all had to be contracted out. They even have the meals catered, and the tents set up for the campers when they arrive.

Being from MAC back in the day (youth any way) I am interested in the details. Which camp did they close? I know Wakonda was sold decades ago, Eagle was downgraded to Webelos-only and Manteno went the way of the dinosaurs. What others am I missing? Been far too long since I slept under canvas in one of my youthful stomping grounds.

RR