Location:

The subject site (all 244.8 acres) is readily delineated by State Highway 71 on the south and on the east; Big Sauk Lake on the north; and Main Street on the west.  A portion of the site (roughly 100 acres) is within the jurisdiction of the city of Sauk Centre, with the majority of the land area within Sauk Centre Township.

Size:

The total land area of the subject property is 244.8 acres.  The subject property consists of one contiguous land parcel, part of which is improved with the multiple buildings of the former home school facility.

Access/Visibility:

For a location within a small, outlying community, the general location has reasonable accessibility given its position along Interstate 94.  Specifically, the subject property is located about two miles to the north of the interstate, with a direct access route along Main Street to the interchange.

Given significant street frontage, the subject property has multiple points of potential direct accessibility.  At present, the only improved access into the subject property is from State Highway 71, along the south perimeter.  The access road into the subject property is known as State Highway 302, and this access route serves the existing building campus.

Despite the significant frontage along State Highway 71, the level of visibility/exposure to traffic volume is not all that significant.  This is partly due to the large land area of the subject property, only some of which benefits from the highway frontage.

Streets:

State Highway 71 is a two-lane, asphalt surfaced roadway with an asphalt shoulder.  This highway abuts part of the south and east perimeters of the subject property.  Other street frontage includes old Highway 71 and Main Street.  Old Highway 71 abuts part of the easterly perimeter of the subject property and is an older, two-lane section of roadway serving localized properties. Main Street abuts the entire westerly perimeter of the subject property and is a two-lane, asphalt surfaced city street which serves the Country Club and nearby single-family residences.

Utilities:

According to officials of Sauk Centre Public Utilities, the infrastructure serving the subject property represents a private system.  However, the unique aspect of the system is that it is connected to the public infrastructure.  The point of connection is at State Highway 71 and State Highway 302.  Reportedly, the localized capacity of the public system is more than adequate to serve intense development of the entire subject property.

Effectively, due to the connection of the private system with the public system, the existing campus is served by municipal water and sanitary sewer services.  Furthermore, the campus is served by natural gas, electricity, telephone and fiber optics, high-speed telecommunications.

Water - Water service approaches from the south via a six-inch main to a metering pit along State Highway 71, approximately opposite the end of Ash Street, a couple hundred feet east of Highway 302.  A single six-inch, two-stage meter, in the metering pit measures water use.  From the meter, a six-inch main goes north, then west, then south, picking up buildings with lateral lines ranging to three inches.  The system mainly consists of steel pipe, although copper lines were recently installed from the main line to all buildings. 

Wastewater - An eight inch clay tile sewer main branches off the main at 5th Street and Main Street and head northeasterly to a point just south of Stowe Cottage.  Manhole accesses are marked with fence posts as the line crosses the field.  It serves buildings by heading north, then east and then south.  Wastewater use is derived from water use at the facility.  Much of the sanitary system water system is older, with parts of the system dating back to the early 1900s.  The lines were reportedly pressurized about two years ago and no problems were encountered.

Electric - The electric service approaches the subject property from overhead lines on the east border of the Sauk Centre Golf Club, branching east between Alcott and Sullivan Cottages.  From that point it is a mixture of recent underground and aging overhead.  A single meter located on the west edge of the property meters electric use.  The electrical lines are all new with ample capacity.  Most buildings had new electrical panels installed within the past few years.

Natural Gas - Minnegasco's main enters the subject property parallel and just north of "Lilac Lane" on the west side of the property.  All of the primary structures are metered separately.

Streetlights on the campus are owned by the State of Minnesota. 

Stormwater - Stormwater pickup begins near Stowe Cottage, then north around the north side of Morris Hall, then south to Evers Cottage and then across the pasture, under Highway 71 where it empties into a creek and wetlands area that discharges into the Sauk River.
 

Topography:

The subject land has limited to moderate undulation, characterized as level to gently rolling.  The elevation is similar to street grade along all perimeters. There is a small, low-lying area in the extreme easterly area of the site, abutting Old Highway 71.  According to Sterns County Environmental Services, this area is roughly twelve acres in size, consisting of some wetland areas and some areas of hydric soils.

Lake Shore:

The subject property has significant lake shore along Big Sauk Lake.  According to the site survey, the subject property has roughly 3,537 lineal feet of lake frontage, which essentially extends west from the Highway 71 bridge crossing.  The Lake shore meanders slightly, but not significantly.  For the most part, the subject land is significantly elevated above the lake, with a sharp drop down to lake elevation.  The difference in elevation is roughly estimated to range from 20 feet to 30 feet.

Legal Description:

LEGAL DESCRIPTION
STATE OF MINNESOTA
SAUK CENTRE, MN