NEW JERSEY DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

OFFICE OF TRANSACTIONS AND PUBLIC LAND ADMINISTRATION

OPPORTUNITY FOR PUBLIC COMMENT ON

PROPOSED LEASE OF HISTORIC PROPERTY

                   PROPERTY INFORMATION:

                        Ramsaysburg Homestead Historic Site

                       140 Route 46 E

                        Knowlton Township, Warren County

                        Block 57, Lot 20

DEPARTMENT MANAGING PROGRAM: State Parks, Forests & Historic Sites

DEPARTMENT FACILITY: Ramsaysburg Homestead Historic Site

PROPOSED LESSEE: Township of Knowlton

PROPOSED ACTION: The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (“Department”) is proposing to allow the Township of Knowlton (“Township”) to continue management, operation and maintenance of the historic Ramsaysburg Homestead (“Homestead”) in Knowlton Township, Warren County under a new 20-year lease.

SITE HISTORY:

The Homestead is an approximate 12-acre, partially wooded site located between Route 46 and the Delaware River. It was acquired by the Department in 2002. In 2004, the site was listed on both the National and New Jersey Registers of Historic Places.

The Homestead was originally settled in 1795 by James and Adam Ramsay. At one time, the Homestead contained a tavern, a store, a post office, a lumberyard, a sawmill, a storehouse, a blacksmith shop, tenant houses and other buildings. The present-day Homestead consists of a tavern, barn, cottage, smokehouse, and shed.

At the time of acquisition of the Homestead by the Department, most of the structures on the site were in significant disrepair. Due to the historic significance of the site, the Township worked with the Department to get the Homestead listed on the National and New Jersey Registers of Historic Places and agreed to take on management of the site through a lease with the Department.

When the Homestead was first acquired by the Department, it was assigned to Fish and Wildlife to be managed as part of the Beaver Brook Wildlife Management Area due to its primary attributes being greenway protection for the Delaware River, fishing access, and cartop launching of canoes and kayaks. Now that the Homestead has been officially listed on the National and State Registers of Historic Places, administrative oversight of the Homestead by the Department is in the process of being reassigned to the Office of Historic Sites within the Department’s State Parks, Forests & Historic Sites program.

LEASE HISTORY:

The Township has managed the Homestead since 2006 under a 20-year lease with the Department. During that time, the Township has hosted multiple events at the property and has kept it clean and accessible to visitors. Over the course of the lease, the Township has invested over $1.4 million dollars in public funds, from both its funds and grant funds, to maintain and improve the Homestead. Since 2002, the Knowlton Township Historic Commission has applied for and received grants for the site from the Warren County Cultural & Heritage Commission, Warren County Municipal and Charitable Conservancy Trust Fund, Delaware River Greenway Partnership, Garden State Historic Preservation Trust Fund/New Jersey Historic Trust, National Park Service/Martins Jacoby Watershed Association and the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) Transportation Alternatives Program.

For two decades, the Township has focused on the restoration of the remaining five buildings at the Homestead towards for future use as an interpretive arts and cultural center. Projects undertaken by the Township have included the following.

Site: The Township worked with Department to research and secure a listing on both the National and State Registers of Historic Places for the Homestead and prepare a historic structures report (2004), which was the foundation for restoration planning and adaptive reuse of the site.

All buildings:

Tavern: The Township installed initial roof tarps to stop water infiltration and stabilize structures, completed roof frame repair, replacement and restoration, sistering new joists and beams to originals, installed new slate roofing, electrical service, and a central station alarm system, completed siding repairs and replacement, window repairs, porch replacement, exterior painting, interior cleaning of buildings, and fire code safety inspections.

Barn: The Township installed initial roof tarps to stop water infiltration and stabilize structures, completed roof frame repair and restoration, sistering new joists and beams to originals, new standing seam metal roofing, window repairs and replacements, new electrical service, exterior painting, interior cleaning of buildings, and fire code safety inspections.

Cottage & Smoke House: The Township installed initial roof tarps to stop water infiltration and stabilize structures, and completed roof frame repairs, new slate roofing, siding repair and replacement, exterior painting, interior cleaning of buildings, and fire code safety inspections.

Wagon Shed: The Township installed initial roof tarps to stop water infiltration and stabilize structures, new standing seam metal roofing and siding, interior cleaning of buildings, and fire code safety inspections.

Grounds: installed interpretive signage, repaired the amphitheater stone walls and steps, general maintenance and upkeep including, grass cutting, removal of dead ash trees, exterior cleaning of buildings, fire alarm and security maintenance,  repaired storm and flood damage, and worked with a local boy scout troop to install a memorial flag pole, picnic area and fire ring, and improve a deteriorated terrace with new bluestone.

At present, the Township has obtained grant funds totaling $1,355,725 from the New Jersey Department of Transportation ($815,000), the New Jersey Historic Trust ($365,725), and the Warren County Municipal and Charitable Conservancy Trust Fund ($175,000) to continue the exterior and interior rehabilitation and restoration of the Tavern, Cottage and Wagon Shed for interpretation and visitor support services.  Specifically, the New Jersey Department of Transportation grant will allow the Township to continue the restoration of interior finishes at the Tavern and Cottage, including plaster, flooring, carpentry, utilities, mechanical, electrical, and plumbing upgrades (which will include a new accessible restroom at the Tavern), and the restoration of the porches (including accessible ramps). Work will also include adding a commercial-grade kitchen and accessible restrooms at the Wagon Shed.  The New Jersey Historic Trust grant will allow the Township to focus on the restoration of interior finishes and features at the Tavern, exterior and interior restoration at the Cottage, and the related mechanical, electrical, plumbing and utility upgrades, and barrier-free access at both sites. The Warren County Municipal and Charitable Conservancy Trust Fund grant will allow the Township to continue the exterior restoration of the Cottage, including windows, doors, siding, roofing, porches, and the interior restoration of the Cottage, including plaster, flooring, doors, door hardware, and related work at the interior of the Tavern.

LEASE TERMS/OBJECTIVES:

The Township, with the assistance of the Knowlton Township Historical Commission and the Friends of Ramsaysburg, has been an excellent steward of the Homestead during the last 20 years. Continuing this arrangement for another 20-year term will be mutually beneficial for the Township and the Department and will allow the Township to remain eligible for the various sources of grant funding available for historic preservation.

The compensation for the 2006 lease was $1 per year, in anticipation of the significant in-kind services to be provided by the Township for the preservation, maintenance, and restoration of the historic structures on the Homestead, as well as the establishment and maintenance of a parking area for public recreational use of the Delaware River waterfront portion of the site. As noted above, the Township has made significant in-kind contributions to the Homestead since 2006.

When it seeks approval of the new lease from the State House Commission, the proposed compensation will be $1 per year, with the condition that any funds raised by the Township through events or other revenue streams on the site are applied toward maintenance and operation of the Homestead, and a minimum amount of 5% of gross annual revenue, or $2,500 per year (whichever is greater) is applied by the Township toward capital improvements at the site. This requirement is now generally applicable to the Department’s historic sites leases and is not specific to this site. Based on the Township’s past stewardship of the Homestead, the Department anticipates that the Township’s financial commitments to the leased area will far exceed the minimum amount.

As part of the lease, the Township will continue to manage public access to the Delaware River by fishermen, canoes, and kayaks.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Aerial Map of the Area Proposed to be Leased

Additional information about the Ramsaysburg Homestead may be found at www.ramsaysburg.org.

PUBLIC COMMENT:

The Department will not be conducting a formal public hearing on this proposal, but is instead offering the opportunity to submit written comment on this matter in advance of seeking the necessary approvals for the new lease. If the Department decides to proceed with a new lease to the Township, it will seek the approval of the State House Commission. The Department anticipates that the earliest this approval could be obtained is in April 2026.

Written comments on (or questions about) the proposed lease may be directed to:

New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection

Office of Transactions and Public Land Administration

Public Land Administration Section

401 E State Street

P.O. Box 420, Mail Code 401-07

Trenton, NJ 08625-0420

PublicLandAdministration@deptest.nj.gov

 

Written public comments on this proposed lease will be accepted until March 19, 2026. Please note that to ensure the Department’s timely receipt of any public comments, submission via email (rather than regular mail) is strongly recommended.

The Department will take all comments into account when making its final decision on this matter. The comment period will remain open until March 19, 2026, after which the Department will post a general Q&A in response to any frequently asked questions. However, the Department will not be responding directly to individual comments received on this matter.