Of the more than 20 plats tentatively identified by the borough Land Management division for sale this fall, three are in the southcentral Peninsula.

One lies roughly 15 miles out East End Road and is comprised of 160 acres of what neighbor Lloyd Schade calls "wasteland."

"That is part of the land that nobody wanted," he said. "That's why the borough ended up with it. That's why my property ends there."

The land is nearly all wetland and is the source of drinking water for the more than 100 homes in the vicinity, Schade said.

Land Management Officer Paul Ostrander, who with Planning Director Max Best identifies land to include in the annual sales, said their sources the National Wetland Inventory and the US Department of Agriculture soils report show between 30 and 50 percent wetlands on the 160 acres.

"Our sources indicate that this is a parcel that could be developed," Ostrander said.

The land is part of 155,000 acres designated for community development through the municipal entitlement program when the borough was created.

Theoretically, Ostrander said, the state wouldn't put land up for development if it wasn't viable.

Although the borough has selected some land that turned out not be developable for various reasons, preliminary assessments of the land, which lies to the north of the intersection of Lowbush and East End Roads, looks to be OK, he said.

The land is classified as rural, which means there are no restrictions on what that land can be used for.

This designation was selected based on several criteria location, surrounding uses, existing and future access, property characteristics including topography, soils and availability of utilities, known encumbrances and comments from the land planning commission.

"Certainly there needs to be responsible development on the parcel," Ostrander said, but "there are regulating agencies that control that environment. Clearly if there's development, any filling or dredging of wetlands," the Corps of Engineers would have permitting responsibilities.

Schade predicts a rude awakening for anyone who buys the land for residential or commercial purposes.

"The Corps of Engineer will shut them down," said Schade, who owns property to the north and east of the lot.

He would prefer that the borough designate the land as agricultural or preservation. In either scenario, the corps would have increased jurisdiction.

"I want the country built up and done right. But, water is extremely important in this country. And we have pure water here," Schade said.

Ostrander said he encourages anyone with concerns to present their comments to the borough assembly during a public hearing Aug. 3 or the planning commission July 19.

"They should testify in front of the assembly if they think that their water is coming from there," he said. "If they have a valid concern there, they need to come and explain that. There's information out there that we're not privy to."

The assembly, he said, typically gives strong credence to public testimony.

The ordinance that would approve the parcels for sale was introduced at the assembly's last meeting July 6.

A 160 acre parcel in Anchor Point and a 40 acre lot on Diamond Ridge Road also are included in the sale.

The exact prices of the parcels will be determined by the assembly, although the division suggest fair market value.

For example, the East End parcel is suggested to be sold for $128,000.

The sale will be open for bids this fall from Sept. 30 to Oct. 27. Highest bidders will be announced Oct. 28.

For more information on the sales visit the borough's land management website at www.borough.kenai.ak.us/LandManagement/default.htm.

Carly Bossert can be reached at carly.bossert@homernews.com.