[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 178 (Friday, September 13, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48370-48372]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-19634]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Bureau of Land Management

[LLESM03300.L14400000.FR0000 FLES-5859 19X]


Notice of Realty Action: Competitive Lease of Land and Equestrian 
Facility at Lorton, VA

AGENCY: Bureau of Land Management, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of realty action.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) proposes to offer 
approximately 46 acres of public lands for lease of an equestrian 
facility located at the Meadowood Special Recreation Management Area 
(SRMA) in Lorton, Virginia. The lease would be issued for a period of 
10 years, which may be renewed at the discretion of the BLM. To be 
considered, all bids must be at not less than the appraised fair market 
value. The appraised rental value for the above-described land and 
equestrian facility is $26,000 per year. The proposed lease will be 
subject to the applicable provisions of the Federal Land and Policy 
Management Act of 1976 (FLPMA).

DATES: Lease applications for use of the equestrian facilities will be 
competitive, with all bids sealed until November 12, 2019. Lease 
applications and sealed bids must be received by the BLM, Northeastern 
States District by no later than 4:00 p.m. Central Time on November 12, 
2019. The BLM will start accepting lease applications and sealed bids 
on October 15, 2019. This deadline for submission of a lease 
application and sealed bids will be announced in the Fairfax County 
Times and on the BLM Eastern States website: https://www.blm.gov/eastern-states, at least 30 days prior to lease bid closing date.
    On or before October 28, 2019, interested parties may submit 
comments on the decision of the BLM regarding

[[Page 48371]]

the availability of the lands described herein for lease; and the 
prospective decision of the BLM to entertain applications for a 
competitive bid for the land and facilities as described in the above 
summary section to the BLM at the addresses listed in the ADDRESSES 
section:
    Submit comments on this proposal to lease to the address listed.

ADDRESSES: You may submit written comments on the proposed realty 
action, and submit lease applications and sealed bids to the District 
Manager, BLM Northeastern States District, 626 E Wisconsin Ave, Suite 
200, Milwaukee, WI 53202. Copies of maps that depict the facilities 
offered under this lease, the applicable regulations, and further 
details, including the lease agreement, are available on the BLM 
Eastern States website: https://www.blm.gov/eastern-states. This 
information is also available for review during normal business hours 
(8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. ET Monday through Friday) at the Lower Potomac 
Field Station office located at the Meadowood SRMA, 10406 Gunston Road, 
Lorton, Virginia.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dean Gettinger, BLM, at telephone: 
414-297-4421, email: [email protected]. Persons who use a 
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD) may call the Federal Relay 
Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339 to contact Mr. Gettinger during normal 
business hours. The FRS is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, to 
leave a message or question. You will receive a reply during normal 
business hours. Copies of these maps are available for inspection at 
the SRMA, located at 10406 Gunston Road, Lorton, Virginia, and by 
email, or telephone request.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The BLM proposes to offer for lease a 46-
acre equestrian facility, comprised of a 45-stall horse barn with two 
indoor arenas, a six-stall pole barn, a lighted outdoor arena, several 
other supporting structures, and approximately 44.3 acres of fenced 
pastures and paddocks, all located at the Meadowood SRMA. The 
facilities offered under this proposed lease are depicted on the maps 
``Meadowood Equestrian Facility'' (Figure 1) and Meadowood Equestrian 
Facility Buildings'' (Figure 2). To obtain copies of the maps, see 
ADDRESSES.
    After review, the BLM has determined that the proposed use of the 
equestrian facility is in conformance with the applicable BLM land use 
plan; i.e., the Meadowood Special Recreation Management Area Integrated 
Activity Management Plan/Environmental Assessment, approved by Record 
of Decision on May 28, 2004, which allows for an equestrian lease, and 
complies with Section 302(b) of FLPMA. This proposed use is in 
accordance with Department of Interior Secretarial Order 3373 (SO 
3373), which seeks to increase outdoor recreation opportunities for all 
Americans by ensuring continued access to public land and waters 
managed by the Department. This action will sustain recreational 
equestrian use that has been ongoing in this area since before the BLM 
acquired the property in a lands exchange with Fairfax County, dated 
October 18, 2001.
    A competitive leasing process will be used to ensure fairness 
because the BLM is aware of multiple parties who have interest in 
commercially operating this equestrian facility. The successful lessor 
will support conservation stewardship, and emphasize the core 
principles of SO 3373 by being a good neighbor to all adjacent 
landowners, whether they may be Federal, State, county, or private 
landowners. Application and Bid procedures: Applications must supply 
the bidder's technical and financial capability for the term of the 
lease, qualifications, experience and a description of their proposed 
operation. Sealed bids must be for not less than the appraised fair 
market value rent of $26,000. The lease application and bid must 
include a reference to this notice and comply in all other respects 
with the regulations pertaining to land use authorization applications 
at 43 CFR 2920.5-2.
    In accordance with 43 CFR 2920.8, rent will be payable annually or 
otherwise in advance, as determined by the BLM, and may be periodically 
adjusted every 5 years or earlier to reflect current fair market value. 
When a lease is granted, the lessee shall reimburse the United States 
for all reasonable administrative and other costs incurred by the 
United States in processing the lease application and for monitoring of 
the land and the facilities authorized. The reimbursement of costs 
shall be in accordance with the provisions of 43 CFR 2920.6.
    The lease application and each sealed bid must include a certified 
check, money order, bank draft, or cashier's check for a non-refundable 
processing fee of $440 made payable in U.S. currency to: ``Department 
of the Interior-Bureau of Land Management.'' The check and all 
documents must be enclosed in a sealed envelope with the name 
``Meadowood Equestrian Land Use Application'' written on the lower 
front left-hand corner of the envelope. The BLM will not accept 
personal or company checks. The BLM will also subsequently determine 
cost recovery fees for processing and monitoring the action.
    The lease shall be awarded on the basis of the public benefit to be 
provided, the financial and technical capabilities of the bidder to 
undertake the project, and the bid offered. Applicants can demonstrate 
this capability by documenting in their bid package any previous 
successful experience in the operation and maintenance of similar 
facilities on public or non-public lands; providing information on the 
availability of sufficient capitalization to carry out the operation 
and maintenance of the facility; and providing written copies of 
conditional commitments of Federal and other loan guarantees or other 
documentation demonstrating the availability of financial resources.
    All bidders will receive written notice of the results within 30 
days after closing of the bid period. The winning bidder will work with 
the BLM to enter into a lease and a cost-recovery agreement to cover 
annual monitoring costs on the equestrian facility. In addition, 
subsequent annual payments to monitor the operations and maintenance of 
the equestrian facility will be paid in advance and simultaneously with 
annual rental payments. The reimbursement of costs shall be in 
accordance with the provisions of 43 CFR part 2920.6. The winning 
bidder will also be required to obtain a performance and reclamation 
bond and insurance prior to lease issuance. If the winning bidder is 
unable to complete the lease authorization process for any reason, the 
BLM may offer the lease to the next highest bidder.
    Federal law requires that a bidder must be: (1) A citizen of the 
United States who is 18 years of age or older; (2) A corporation 
subject to the laws of any State or of the United States; (3) A State, 
State instrumentality or political subdivision authorized to hold 
property; or (4) An entity legally capable of conveying and holding 
lands or interest therein under the laws of the Commonwealth of 
Virginia. Evidence of United States citizenship is a birth certificate, 
passport, or naturalization papers. Failure to submit the above 
documents to the BLM within 30 days from receipt of the successful 
bidder letter will result in rejection of the lease application and 
bid.
    If authorized, the lease will be subject to reservations for road, 
public utilities and flood control purposes, both existing and 
proposed. The lease will also be subject to valid existing rights, 
including:

[[Page 48372]]

    (1) Liquefied Natural Gas pipeline easement to Columbia Liquefied 
Natural Gas along the northeastern boundary (along Gunston Road); and
    (2) Dominion Energy electrical easement along the northeastern 
boundary.
    All areas not under a lease at the SRMA are available for public 
use.
    Submit comments on this proposal to lease to the address listed in 
the ADDRESSES section. Only written comments will be considered 
properly filed. Before including your address, phone number, email 
address, or other personally identifiable information in your comment 
you should be aware that your entire comment, including your personally 
identifiable information may be made publicly available at any time. 
While you can ask us in your comment to withhold your personally 
identifiable information from the public review, we cannot guarantee 
that we will be able to do so.
    Adverse comments will be evaluated by the BLM Eastern State's State 
Director, 20 M Street SE, Washington, DC 20003, who may sustain, 
vacate, or modify this realty action. In the absence of any adverse 
comment, this realty action will become the final determination of the 
BLM as to each one of the two decisions stated above.

    Authority:  43 CFR 2920.4.

Dean Gettinger,
District Manager, Northeastern States District.
[FR Doc. 2019-19634 Filed 9-12-19; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4310-GJ-P