Real Estate team lauded for groundbreaking land exchange process

Photo By Leon Roberts | Lt. Col. Stephen Murphy (Right), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District commander, presents achievement awards to Eric Crafton and Mary Katherine Keith during a staff meeting Feb. 16, 2017 at the Nashville District Headquarters in Nashville, Tenn. They were two of seven team members who developed a groundbreaking land exchange process that enabled the Nashville District to obtain land needed for a roller compacted concrete berm adjacent to the Center Hill Lake saddle dam at Lancaster, Tenn. (USACE photo by Leon Roberts)  

NASHVILLE, TN, UNITED STATES

02.24.2017

Story by Leon Roberts 

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Nashville District

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Feb. 24, 2017) – The “Center Hill Land Exchange Real Estate Delivery Team” recently received a team achievement award for its groundbreaking land exchange process from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Great Lakes and Ohio River Division.

The team crafted a model land exchange package in fiscal year 2015 to exchange land at Center Hill Lake with land owned by Tennessee, a process reviewed and executed by the commissioner of the Department of General Services, the attorney general, and governor. The package streamlined and reduced the normal processing timeline by an entire year.

Lt. Col. Stephen Murphy, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nashville District commander, presented the achievement awards to team members on behalf of William G. White, chief of Real Estate at the Great Lakes and Ohio River Division in Cincinnati, during a staff meeting Feb. 16, 2017 at the district’s headquarters in Nashville, Tenn. The commander lauded the team for obtaining the land required for the installation of a roller compacted concrete berm adjacent to the Center Hill Saddle Dam.

“There is a lot of great work going on in Real Estate,” Murphy said. “On behalf of the district, thank you for representing us so well.”

The Nashville District worked with Edgar Evins State Park and state of Tennessee to acquire land needed for the eventual construction of a berm. Although the land exchange was unprecedented, the team approached the drafting, reviews, and land exchange documents with a “fast-track” mindset.

“What the team has accomplished has become a national model for land exchange, said Mike Abernathy, Nashville District Real Estate Division chief.

The team consisted of Mary Catherine Keith, Ed Deslatte, Niikorley Norals, Eric Crafton, and Mike Callahan (now with the Baltimore District Real Property Services Field Office) from the Nashville District Real Estate Division, and consultants Bradley Stark with the Huntington District, and Jason E. Meyer with the Louisville District.

Abernathy said the team also coordinated with regional experts in the Great Lakes and Ohio River Division and together they developed a path forward to produce a model land exchange development package that other districts and states can utilize.

“This achievement helped both the federal government and the state of Tennessee to reach their goals of providing important services to citizens through exchanging lands both entities needed. It also, for no cost, saved hundreds of thousands of dollars,” Abernathy said.

Linda Adcock, Center Hill Dam Safety Project manager, said the real estate team executed a lot of steps with the state to obtain the land needed for long-term maintenance of the planned RCC berm, and did so with care and precision.

“The park personnel were thrilled that we were willing and able to make the land swap work,” Adcock said. “It was a true win-win and demonstrates a true partnering spirit.”

• Date Taken: 02.24.2017
• Date Posted: 02.24.2017 16:08
• Story ID: 224835
• Location: NASHVILLE, TN, US