The city of Buckley city council recently approved a 50-year lease of a 138.75 acre parcel of land located near the Rainier State School belonging to the Department of Social Health Services, for $20,274 each year.

Buckley City Administrator Dave Schmidt said he has been trying to broker the deal with DSHS for years, because he feels it can be a money-maker for the city.

“For now a few of the things we plan to do with the property are to collect rent from the farmer tenant who works a large portion of the property and maybe we will develop an animal control facility, keeping the animals far from the city. Additionally, the existing buildings on the property are conducive to eventually trying to set up a bio-solid composite site,” Schmidt said.

Schmidt said that those ideas are just the tip of the iceberg. Other ideas that could be considered by the city council are building a large baseball complex and a polo ground for Plateau clubs to enjoy.

Buying the Washington State University acreage from DSHS was not an option. One of the stipulations of DSHS accepting the land from WSU was that it would never be sold.

Reach John Leggett at jleggett@courierherald.com or 360-802-8207.