If the property isn't sold in the next six weeks, Stimson will liquidate its assets by selling the equipment during a two-day auction set for Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, said Jeff Webber, vice president of manufacturing for the Portland, Ore.-based lumber products company.
The sale of the Bonner sawmill does not include about 100,000 acres of Montana timberland owned by Stimson.
Webber said Stimson isn't “abandoning” the wood-products industry, but the 125-year-old sawmill in Bonner isn't in a location with a reliable supply of timber.
“I'm hopeful someone will buy it as a sawmill, but most likely it will be bought for another use,” Webber said. “Sure I'm sad. I worked there a long time and have an emotional attachment to the place.”
Webber also stressed that the meeting was arranged before Gov. Brian Schweitzer's press conference Tuesday announcing that state officials want Stimson to clean up at least $5 million in contaminated sediment on the property.
He declined to comment on any restoration of the Blackfoot River channel, but said Stimson would complete its own environmental analysis of the property by the end of September.
“We're committed to cleaning up the environmental issues there,” Webber said.
Several of those in attendance, ranging from lumber people to economic development officials, said they would spread the word on the sale of the 170-acre property.
They said they were saddened by the company's decision, but hardly surprised since the plant has been closed since late May.
“It is a short period of time and everybody has to move real fast to get the word out through their networks,” said Craig Rawlings, manager of the Smallwood Utilization Network. “Maybe there is an opportunity to keep it going as a scaled-down mill. Right now, there is a ton of people looking for deals, especially in biomass and alternative energy.”
Doug Ardiana, superintendent at the Bonner School, said the community wants a strong employer on the site.
“My main concern is it stays as an industrial site and continue to provide good-quality jobs,” Ardiana said.
Dick King, president of the Missoula Area Economic Development Corp., said a large industrial parcel in Missoula County is rare and the property's rail access is key.
“This is very positive,” King said. “This property could be very attractive to the right company.”
Chuck Keegan, a forest products researcher at the University of Montana's Bureau of Business and Economic Research, said it was “highly unlikely” someone would buy the property to operate as a sawmill. But he expects buyers from throughout the West would be attracted to an equipment auction.
Webber said Stimson may use some of the equipment in other plants. He said the machinery is between one and 40 years old.
Scott Cooney, a Missoula developer who owns adjoining property, said he remains interested in buying the plant for “green” industrial uses.
He said he was “frustrated” that he hasn't gotten further with Stimson in negotiating a purchase.
“We're going to offer what they are asking. We need their sawmill intact” for his business and energy plans, Cooney said.
Don Moody, vice present at C.B. Richard Ellis, a commercial property real estate firm in Tacoma, Wash., said he was invited by locals to speak in Bonner on Monday night.
Moody said any sale of the plant equipment will help Stimson move ahead with cleaning up the property for sale as an industrial or manufacturing facility.
“Stimson wanted to price it to sell. They are fully aware of the environmental issues and were pricing it to take those into consideration.”
Reporter Pamela J. Podger can be reached at 523-5241 or at pamela.podger@missoulian
com.
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