The land -- farmland, woods and wetlands -- is surrounded by university property on three sides.

01:00 AM EST on Monday, February 20, 2006

BY JENNIFER D. JORDAN
Journal Staff Writer

The University of Rhode Island is interested in buying 131 acres north of Flagg Road in South Kingstown and has received permission from the State Properties Committee to have the land appraised, according to university officials.

It is unclear what would happen to the land, which is north of the campus, if URI purchased the property. University officials say there are no immediate plans to build in that area.

However, the north part of campus is undergoing tremendous growth as it becomes the hub for some of the university's hottest majors: pharmacy, nursing and biotechnology. Two suite-style dormitories are under construction and are due to open in fall 2007, and 750 parking spaces just north of Flagg Road were added in September.

A $50-million biotechnology and life sciences center is scheduled to be built by 2008. In addition, voters will decide this fall on $140 million in bonds to build a science complex in the north campus for a new College of Pharmacy, College of Nursing and chemistry department.

The land the university is considering is made up farmland, woods and wetlands and is surrounded by university property on three sides. The parcel has been owned by the Tibbits family for four decades.

At this stage, university officials said they could offer few details about the proposed purchase.

When asked whether it is possible that in the future the university might want to expand north of Flagg Road, and therefore it would make sense to own contiguous parcels in that area, J. Vernon Wyman, assistant vice president of business services, said yes. "That is the case," he said.

A 17-acre parcel in the northwest corner of the URI-targeted land contains the West Kingston Superfund site, the location of multiple dumps over the years.

By the mid-'70s, hazardous materials were leaking from the landfill, which polluted the ground water. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency declared it a Superfund site in 1992. About $6.2 million has been spent to clean up and cap the site, a process that should be completed this spring, said Jon R. Schock, public services director for South Kingstown.

The Tibbits family, which has farmed in West Kingston for many years, also owns the landfill site, and has been working with town officials to subdivide that portion and give it to the town, Schock said.

"Regulators prefer to see Superfund sites under local government control, to restrict access and to maintain the integrity of the cap, so we are looking for the Tibbits to contribute the property to the town at no cost, and that would be their portion of the remedy," Schock said. "We're in the process of finalizing that process as we speak."

TOWN OFFICIALS said estimating the value of the property will be difficult. Parcels that large rarely come on the market in South Kingstown, and special accommodations are made if the land is set aside as open space.

The Tibbits estate paid $55,750 in taxes on the property last year, according to South Kingstown's assessor, Jean-Paul Bouchard. The property was assessed at a reduced rate because the family preserved the land under the state's Farm, Forest and Open Space Act in 1983. While the 15-year commitment to the act has expired, the property is still considered protected, and therefore is assessed at the lower rate, Bouchard said.

The South Kingstown Land Trust has handled several large land deals in recent years, said Joanne Riccitelli, director of land protection for the trust.

For instance, last month the trust purchased the development rights -- which typically represent 70 percent to 80 percent of full market value -- to 93 acres near the intersection of Routes 2 and 138. The land was appraised at $880,000; the land trust, with help from the town, paid $850,000. A couple of years ago, the trust purchased 68 acres on Yawgoo Pond for nearly $1.3 million; the property was appraised at about $1.4 million.

"That was really a bargain sale, as it was predominately dry land, not wetlands, and it was forested waterfront property," Riccitelli said.

Riccitelli said the land trust hopes to talk to university officials, if URI purchases the Tibbits property, about possible uses for the land.

"Obviously, if the university is going to expand in the future, it makes sense to expand north of Route 138, especially for traffic reasons," Riccitelli said. "And if developing northward would avoid building on Peckham Farm, which is a real gem, better that expansion should occur in the campus core or to the north."

If URI buys the property, it would be the largest land purchase the university has made in at least a decade, Wyman said. About five years ago, URI bought 1.5 acres at 177 Plains Rd. for $232,000. The property had a house, which is now home to the university's safety and risk management department.

The university owns about 1,400 acres in South Kingstown, which includes Peckham and East farms and the 700-acre campus.

jjordan@projo.com / (401) 277-7254