Stockton College/ Ponderlodge Agreement Dead

VILLAS — A deal between Richard M. Stockton College and the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to turn part of the property into an environmental education center is dead after a federal agency insisted on a land swap of similar value if Stockton wished to use Ponderlodge.
DEP spokesman Larry Ragonese told the Herald Stockton College sent a letter to DEP Wed., Oct. 20 informing DEP that the college was no longer interested in using Ponderlodge and would no longer pursue a lease of the property.
He said the U.S. Department of the Interior and National Park Service had reviewed Stockton’s proposal and determined that the college’s proposed use would be considered a “property conversion.”
The U.S. Department of the Interior said, although the proposal contains some very good ideas, it is not in compliance with the requirements of the Land and Water Conservation Fund program for basic outdoor recreation and conservation,” according to Ragonese.
“If the proposal from Stockton College is enacted, this action would be viewed as a conversion and the adversely impacted property would have to be replaced with property of equal or greater fair market value and reasonably equivalent recreation location and usefulness,” said Jack W. Howard, manager of state and local assistance programs for the U.S. Department of the Interior in a letter to the state DEP.
Ragonese said the matter “was up to Stockton.” He said DEP was sort of a neutral player and was willing to work with Stockton if they wanted to lease Ponderlodge.
DEP informed Stockton of the Department of Interior letter on Tues. Oct. 19 and Stockton responded to DEP on Wed. Oct. 20.
Ragonese said DEP’s plans under the Division of Fish and Wildlife is to return Ponderlodge to its natural state. He said if Stockton is not going to move ahead with its plans, DEP will demolish the buildings on the site in the future.
DEP will have to apply to the state treasury to finance demolition.
Stockton College will be required to maintain security of the buildings at Ponderlodge until the demolition, said Ragonese.
Stockton College Vice President of Administration and Finance Matt Altier confirmed the colleges’ proposal for a lease on Ponderlodge “went all the way up the line,” to the Department of Interior and was found not to be in compliance for the program for basic outdoor recreation and conservation. He said the federal agency viewed the project as a conversion of the property that would have to replaced with a similar property, which would be very difficult.
“We tried and we tried for a long time and we put together multiple proposals but in the end it was their decision and they said no,” said Altier.
He said the college is always open to potential future opportunities in Lower Township in “ this current environment that make financial sense and programmatic sense.”
“If we were to offer anything down there it would be something the community wants and something that can sustain itself,” said Altier.
He said Stockton would probably discontinue security on the Ponderlodge property since it was not allowed to carry out its intended project. Altier said the college spent a lot of money on security at Ponderlodge
A change in governors also delayed the project for months, he said. A proposal was submitted before the change in administrations with no response and a new proposal was submitted to the Gov. Chris Christie administration, said Altier.
He said, in the end, it came down to the requirements of the Department of the Interior/National Park Service.
Lower Township Mayor Michael Beck told the Herald said he was disappointed and thought the environmental education center “would have been a good fit” for the township. He said he expected DEP to expedite the demolition of the buildings at Ponderlodge.
“I’ve been assured this won’t be a very long process, we’re talking a couple of months,” said Beck.
He said the biggest issue became the condition of Ponderlodge and preventing a tragedy on the property while the parties were negotiating whether English classes would be allowed in the educational center.
He said if Stockton had to undertake a land swap in order to get approval to use Ponderlodge, it would have taken an innumerable amount of time.
One month ago, Stockton College said it needed the ability to offer courses other than just environmental curriculum.
Beck said he understood Stockton College would need to spend a huge sum of money to restore the buildings and at the same time be restricted to what they could teach at Ponderlodge.
Barbara Skinner, who brought Stockton and DEP together in April 2009, said it is a complete breech of the public trust not to have Ponderlodge as an environmental education center. She said the Department of the Interior had no business saying 12 acres of the property could not be used for environmental education.
“This is not over,” said Skinner. “I’m will continue to work to make this happen.”
“It is a great disservice to Cape May County by certain environmentalists that have lobbied against this in Washington,” she continued.