By Eric Geller

The Philander Chase Corporation (PCC), the non-profit that is tasked with preserving the land around Kenyon’s campus, paid $450,000 for the Tomahawk Golf Course at 10608 Quarry Chapel Road in Gambier at the end of last summer, according to records from the Knox County Auditor, whose website appraises the land’s total value at $56,410. Auditor valuations, however, do not always accurately reflect market value for properties.

The Corporation purchased the golf course on Aug. 30, 2013, “to protect it,” according to PCC Managing Director Lisa Schott.

The Corporation’s mission, Schott said, is to “protect green spaces in the area around Gambier.” It focuses on the land within a five-mile radius of Kenyon.

In almost all cases where the PCC wants to preserve nearby land, it contracts with the owner in what is known as an “easement.” This arrangement grants the PCC certain agricultural or conservation rights without transferring ownership of the property. But in the case of the golf course, the owners, Robert and Robin Hren, listed it for sale, which limited the steps that the PCC could take.

“When something comes up for sale, we don’t have the option of an easement,” Schott said.

The golf course, which sits on eleven parcels of land, is about a mile-and-a-half away from the center of the College. Schott would not discuss how the PCC plans to use the property, saying the Corporation was “still looking at” possible uses and that they would likely unveil more concrete plans this winter.

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