COOLIN — The auction of eight endowment lots at Priest Lake raised more than $11.4 million — more than  $500,000 over the appraised value of the lots.

The Idaho Department of Lands sold the now-former endowment-owned lots at Priest Lake for deeded ownership during a public auction. 

The public auction generated $11,404,720 which is $526,000 over the appraised value. Of the eight properties sold, only one had competitive bidding and seven had only one bid. The competitive bidding resulted in a 4.84% overall increase above the total appraised value of the properties.

The lot, located on S. Rosalia Bay Road in the Hunt Creek subdivision in Coolin, was ultimately purchased by the former lessee for $2.1 million — an increase of 33.42% over the appraisal of $1.745 million.

The other seven lots, also located in Coolin, were sold for the appraised amount: Bull Trout Road, $1,302,000; N. Mackinaw Road,  $1,155,000; Cape Horn Road, $1,433,000; Cutthroat Road, $1,233,000; N. Two Creeks Road,  $1,045,000; Camp Cudge Road, $1,247,000; and Indian Creek Road, $1,889,720. The properties on Rosalia Bay, N. Mackinaw, N. Two Creeks and Camp Cudge roads were all purchased by the existing lessee. The others were purchased by non-lessees and will need to pay the IDL for the amount bid for the land and pay the former lessee for the appraised value of the home.

The land is held in trust by IDL for the Public School Endowment beneficiary, but the cabins and other improvements on the land are owned by the leaseholders as personal property.

The Idaho Constitution requires a public auction for the sale of endowment lands managed by the State Board of Land Commissioners and IDL. The Land Board previously voted to auction the lots over time instead of continuing to lease them.

Under the direction of the Land Board, IDL manages 2.5 million acres of state endowment trust land held in trust for nine beneficiaries. The board is under a constitutional mandate to maximize long-term financial returns for the beneficiaries.

In 2010, the Land Board approved a plan to divest the state’s ownership of cottage sites over time. The Land Board authorized IDL to offer the remaining residential lake lots for auction through 2039. When available, IDL will be auctioning un-leased lots at both Priest and Payette Lakes.

The Land Board is comprised of Idaho’s governor, secretary of state, attorney general, state controller, and superintendent of public instruction.