Utah Privatizes Land Inside Proposed Bears Ears National Monument
Buyer known for speculating around National Parks
By Greg Zimmerman
The Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration sold-off thousands of acres of state-owned lands this week, including privatizing nearly 400 acres lying within the proposed Bears Ears National Monument. The Comb Ridge parcel — which sold for $500,000 to a land speculator — holds significant cultural resources, including portions of the historic Hole in the Rock Trail.
The winning bid went to an infamous Utah land speculator, the “Lyman Family Farm, Inc.,” which outbid the Hole in the Rock Foundation and The Conservation Fund. The Hole in the Rock Foundation, who had nominated the parcel for auction, hoped to use the land as a launching pad to lead youth groups on historical and cultural tours of the Hole in the Rock Trail blazed by Mormon pioneers in 1879.
It had initially been expected that the Hole in the Rock Foundation would be the only bidder. The organization “fully [intended] to protect this property in its present condition in order to preserve its representation of the rugged terrain traversed by the original pioneers who settled Bluff and its surrounding countryside.” The auction itself had been quite controversial, with local groups advocating for cultural resources to be permanently protected rather than being transferred into private hands.
But alas, Lyman Family Farm swooped in and outbid the nonprofit by $200,000, claiming that the land is “perfect for sheep grazing.” When asked about the parcel’s location within the proposed monument, Lyman Family Farm representative Joe Hunt proclaimed “what Bears Ears?” Claiming ignorance about the land’s location doesn’t pass the smell test: in fact, the parcel’s location within Bears Ears was prominently featured in the land auction press release.
And sheep grazing? Josh Ewing with Friends of Cedar Mesa summed up that assertion: “[Lyman Family Farm] might want to check out the slick rock. Plus that’s pretty expensive land for grazing sheep.”
So what’s going on? If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck. Lyman Family Farm is listed with the state of Utah as a vegetable and melon farming operation, but these are not your run of the mill melon farmers. In fact, the Lyman Family Farm has spent at least $4.4 million in the last three years buying and privatizing state-owned public lands across Utah, with a history of selecting parcels next to national parks. What’s more, Lyman Family Farm is the only individual or company to have purchased more than one state-owned parcel in the last three years, buying and privatizing at least 12 parcels since 2014.*
In 2014, the Lyman Family Farm spent nearly $300,000 to privatize 240 acres of state land right next to Bryce Canyon National Park. While it’s incredibly unlikely that any vegetable or melon farming is occurring on the land (there wasn’t any water associated with the purchase), the Utah School and Institutional Trust explains that parcel does “…drop off into Bryce Creek with spectacular views of the Bryce Canyon area.”
Also in 2014, Lyman Family Farm privatized nearly 900 acres of state land in central Utah known to be rich in “petroglyphs, pictoglyphs and archaeological artifacts from the Fremont Indian Tribe.” The property is located near the renowned Range Creek Ranch, which has been called a “national treasure” holding one of the “most important archaeological collections in North America.”
And in the most recent land auction, Lyman Family Farm spent $1.7 million to purchase 200 acres right next to Zion National Park. That’s in addition to the $500,000 spent on land inside the proposed Bears Ears National Monument. The National Parks Conservation Association had hoped to find a buyer committed to permanently protecting the land, but was not able to find someone on short notice.
This type of land speculation by the Lyman Family Farm appears to be perfectly legal. But make no mistake: it is speculating on America’s cultural heritage and on our outdoor legacy, with Utah acting as a willing participant. There was no consideration of whether these lands are more valuable in public rather than private hands.
Indeed, the state makes a few hundred thousand here, another million dollars there. But that’s a drop in the bucket compared to what we all lose when these lands fall into private hands, when trophy homes and private luxury ranches block our access onto public lands.
Utah’s land auctions — and Lyman Family Farm’s participation — is another reminder of how critically important American public lands are. Our national parks, wildlife refuges, and monuments will always remain open and accessible to all Americans. It’s also why, even as Utah sells-off Bears Ears, President Obama must act to permanently protect the region as a national monument.
*Land sale data requested and acquired by the Center for Western Priorities from the Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration. Does not include complete information from the May 2016 auction or the October 2016 auction. CWP has requested this data and will update the blog as soon as we receive it.
