31 acres near Ester may go to an unnamed applicant without an auction

The state is proposing to hand nearly 31 acres of public land near Ester to an applicant without an auction, and its own notice won't say who.

Under a preliminary decision from the Department of Natural Resources, the 30.92-acre parcel about seven miles southeast of Ester would be conveyed noncompetitively, without an auction or competing bidders. Alaskans have until Sept. 1 to comment.

The sale falls under the state's public and charitable use provision, which limits who qualifies: the buyer must be a tax-exempt nonprofit, organized for charitable, religious, scientific, educational or social-welfare purposes, and the land cannot be used for commercial development or closed to the public. Yet the notice identifies the recipient only as a "Public and Charitable Use Applicant." It names no organization.

Under the provision, DNR can also waive the reversionary interest that would otherwise return the land to the state if it stops serving a public purpose. Comments go to the department's Anchorage land office.