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Associated Press in The Plain Dealer (Cleveland, OH)
08-23-98
TOLEDO -- Mayor Carty Finkbeiner has changed his mind about preserving the site of a 1794 battle that opened up Ohio and other parts of the Midwest to white settlement.
Finkbeiner had been trying to sell the Fallen Timbers battleground but now wants to help preservationists raise millions of dollars to turn the site of the 1794 Battle of Fallen Timbers into a historic park.
"The city of Toledo stands ready to work with any and all parties to preserve the battle site," Finkbeiner said.
The 1794 battle took place primarily on a 188-acre tract owned by the city.
For the last few years, a coalition of preservationists have offered to buy it and turn it into a park.
But until Thursday -- the 204th anniversary of the battle -- the mayor had held back, saying the city could make more money by selling it to developers.
The city bought the land in 1987 as part of a failed attempt to extend Toledo's borders.
The mayor said he believed the fair market value of the land to be approximately $7.5 million. Preservation interests previously have offered $2.5 million.
Finkbeiner said he will insist on a high sale price, because the city is facing higher-than-expected costs for the new Jeep plant and it can't afford to sell the Fallen Timbers land a too low a price.
"We have a lot of bills to pay," he said.
Money from the sale of the battlefield will go toward paying off the $20 million loan Toledo is taking out from the federal government for Jeep expenses, he said.
The mayor said he will help activists try to make up the difference, appealing to federal, state and private sources.
Preservationists expressed happiness at news of the mayor's shift.
"This is the most positive statement that I have heard since the beginning of the project," said Steve Pauken, mayor of Maumee, where the land is. "Mayor Finkbeiner has sent us a very positive signal that he wants to work with us."
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