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(Caldwell) – Two adjacent agriculture college endowment parcels in Caldwell were sold at a public auction today for $23,250,000, which does not include the 4% buyer’s premium. Five bidders registered for the auction, with two engaged in bidding. The Pennsylvania headquartered home builder Toll Brothers, Inc., placed the winning bid.
The auction occurred at the Marriott Courtyard on Eagle Road in Meridian.
These parcels were sold at public auction last June, but the winner defaulted on the contract and the $35.2 million auction price. As part of the default, the first auction winner paid $600,000 in damages to the Idaho Endowment beneficiary, which in this case is the University of Idaho.
About the parcels: The two parcels amount to 282 acres adjacent to Caldwell’s Vallivue High School and Middle School and are in one of the fastest-growing counties in Idaho. Both parcels are designated for low-density residential use in the City of Caldwell’s Future Land Use Map.
Reason for the auction: Historically, the University of Idaho leased the Caldwell parcels for agricultural research purposes since the 1940s, but the University sold their adjacent facility. UI seeks to reinvest in land that will facilitate a new Center for Agriculture, Food and the Environment (CAFE) located in the Magic Valley. The State Board of Land Commissioners agreed to the auction after determining that it is in the best interest of the Agricultural College Endowment, which benefits the University of Idaho.
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