ARDEN HILLS, MN—The U.S. General Services Administration has sold a 427-acre portion of the Twin Cities Army Ammunition Plant here to Ramsey County for $28 million.
The property is a portion of the former ordinance plant which, during World War II, occupied nearly four square miles. The Army constructed 323 buildings and at the peak of production employed 24,000 civilian and military personnel. The workforce produced 16.5 billion rounds of small-caliber ammunition for World War II, and the Korean and Vietnam conflicts.
The sale is part of GSA's ongoing efforts to dispose of excess federal property to save taxpayer dollars and make more efficient use of the government's real estate assets. The administration is moving aggressively to dispose of surplus properties, and the agency is currently hosting auctions, requesting industry input, and offering proposed exchanges so it can put even more surplus and underutilized properties to new uses. Since 2010, GSA has completed nearly 400 disposal transactions nationwide, which have generated $145 million in proceeds and eliminated more than 12,500 acres of excess land.
"The sale of surplus federal real estate not only saves taxpayer dollars, but also puts properties to new uses at the local level, sparking commercial economic activity," said GSA Great Lakes Regional Administrator Ann P. Kalayil in a statement. "The TCAAP sale directly supports President Obama's directive to shrink the federal real estate footprint to reduce costs and bolster efficiency."
The deal transfers ownership of 397 acres to Ramsey County immediately, while the remaining 30 acres will be transferred to the county after it conducts environmental remediation, which is expected to take approximately three years. As part of the consideration, Ramsey County executed a $23 million contract for environmental remediation and building demolition, which is now underway.