Hofmann Forest Update: Revised Agreement Enhances Sustainable Forestry Operations

Editor’s Note: The information on this page is outdated and no longer accurate. Get the most current information on the future of Hofmann Forest.

A modified agreement for the sale of Hofmann Forest enhances sustainable forestry operations on the majority of the property. The updated agreement signed by the Board of Trustees for the Endowment Fund of NC State University and approved by the Board of the NC State Natural Resources Foundation Inc. reinforces both boards’ ongoing commitment to maintain a working forest and continue access for NC State students and researchers.

According to the sales agreement, the land will now be conveyed to two buyers who include the original purchaser, Hofmann Forest LLC, along with Resource Management Service LLC, a privately held timber investment management organization and a leader in sustainable forestry timber practices. RMS will manage 56,000 acres of the Hofmann property as a private working forest, providing a diversity of wood products, recreation and education opportunities. RMS will certify the forest land to the SFI Standard®, an internationally recognized comprehensive forest certification standard, and manage the property by a team of skilled and respected professionals.

The agreement calls for the NC State Endowment Fund to receive $140 million from the sale, including $130,850,000 from RMS and Hofmann Forest LLC, and the remaining $9,150,000 from any future proceeds received from the Department of Defense, federal or third-party conservation or other easements.

The Department of Defense has expressed interest in acquiring easements on all or portions of approximately 70,000 acres northwest of Highway 17. Both buyers have agreed to cooperate and negotiate potential easements for airspace, blackout rights and other DOD training activities. RMS is experienced in working with the conservation community regarding land management and preservation.

The pending sale will not affect existing conservation zoning of the property which permits use for timber and agricultural purposes, the preservation of the two existing wetland mitigation banks or the existing lease for Onslow County’s Deppe Park.

All 79,000 acres of the property are zoned for forestry operations or agricultural use, and remain subject to all state and federal environmental regulations and existing zoning rules. Changes in land uses, including changes to accommodate commercial or residential development, would require appropriate agency approval.

Specific property details include the following:

RMS will purchase approximately 56,000 acres that will be operated as a sustainable working forest.

The remaining portion of the property, approximately 23,000 acres, will be sold to Hofmann Forest LLC including:

• A large 12,000-acre pocosin area known as the “big open;”

• Two wetland mitigation banks which total about 500 acres;

• A 400-acre county park that will remain open to the public;

• Approximately 1,500 acres currently used for agriculture; and

• Approximately 2,000 acres in the areas known as “Block 10” previously explored for potential development by the Natural Resources Foundation.

The property will retain the “Hofmann Forest” name as well as the Hofmann monument.

Per the sales agreement, there is a 60-day due diligence contingency period and an additional 15-day closing period making the anticipated closing date on or before Nov. 17.

Proceeds from the sale will be placed in an endowment with the annual return of earnings benefitting the College of Natural Resources, in keeping with the intent of the original deed that transferred the forest from the private non-profit Forestry Foundation (now known as the Natural Resources Foundation) to the Endowment Fund in 1977. The Forestry Foundation purchased the property in the 1930s.

It is estimated that the annual benefit to CNR will ultimately exceed $5.5 million, more than four times the average annual income generated by the forest over the last three years. These funds will pave the way for unprecedented investments in students, faculty, academic programs, research and extension in CNR.

The additional resources generated by the endowment will directly support students through scholarships and fellowships. They will also support and build the academic offerings and the research and engagement programs within CNR, helping the college achieve the transformational goals of its strategic plan to become the go-to leader for solutions to natural resource challenges across the state and around the world.

Statement from Chancellor Randy Woodson:

“This agreement generates critical resources that will enhance educational and research opportunities for the College of Natural Resources while providing for sustainability of the forest and continuing student and faculty access to the property.

“The NC State Natural Resources Foundation’s sole purpose is to benefit the College of Natural Resources, its student and its faculty, and the sale of Hofmann Forest has always been about that purpose. Given the foundation’s concentration of assets in this one property, the potential risks, and increasingly limited college use of the land, its board determined the sale of the forest would best serve the college both now and in perpetuity.”