Deals reached to sell land for Flight 93 National Memorial in Somerset
Chris Williams had her doubts, but a last-minute deal to sell the land she and her husband own in Somerset County avoided the necessity of the government seizing it for the Flight 93 National Memorial.
Chris and Dale Williams and four other landowners had until Friday to strike a deal with the National Park Service for approximately 160 acres in the area where Flight 93 crashed after being hijacked by terrorists on Sept. 11, 2001. The government vowed to take the land through eminent domain if the deadline was not met.
The Ruffsdale couple's six-acre property includes a log cabin, which the family used for weekend retreats.
"We got not quite 70 percent of what we wanted," said Chris Williams.
She said negotiations on Wednesday went better than expected.
"I couldn't believe it," Williams said. "I went in apprehensive. We're pleased."
The government also reached an agreement with Tim Lambert of Aliquippa, who also owns six acres near the crash site.
Lambert, a radio newsman in Harrisburg, said he reached "an unofficial agreement" with the government Thursday.
Lambert owns 163 of the 2,200 acres the national memorial park eventually will encompass. He said the remaining 157 acres he owns will be purchased by the Families of Flight 93.
Lambert said the deal on the six acres he owns closest to the crash site was never in doubt because he always intended to donate the land. He will donate the proceeds from the sale to the family group for the memorial, he said.
Lambert said the Park Service offer on the six acres was "very generous." He added he probably "left money on the table" with the other acreage, but that was fine.
Lambert said he's glad the matter has finally been thrashed out.
A statement released yesterday by the Families of Flight 93 said "there has been good dialogue and a commitment on all sides to making this work."
It said the families are "optimistic about reaching our goal" of opening the memorial by Sept. 11, 2011.
Both Lambert and Williams said this was the first time they had discussed their land with the Park Service. In October, the government began talking about the possibility of seizing the property using eminent domain. The Park Service would acquire the property after getting an independent determination of its fair market value.
Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar met with landowners on June 5. Afterward, his office issued a statement setting a one-week deadline for the negotiations to be completed. Salazar did not mention the deadline when he met with them, several of the landowners said.
Williams said yesterday that the Salazar visit probably pushed matters along.
The government wants to open the $58 million Flight 93 National Memorial on the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Officials have said construction must be under way by November in order for that deadline to be met.
The 40 passengers and crew members of Flight 93 who died in the crash near Shanksville in Stonycreek Township have been credited with thwarting an attack on either the White House or Capitol in Washington. The terrorists also struck the Pentagon in Arlington, Va., and the World Trade Center in New York City.
Information about the other landowners was not immediately available. The Department of Interior said it expected to issue a statement on the status of negotiations later yesterday.
