USNPS to pay $3.2M in land swap involving property in Valley Forge, Independence NHPs
The National Park Service is set to pay the private American Revolution Center, known as ARC, $3.2 million as part of a land-exchange deal, after which the center plans to operate for at least several years in a portion of the old Independence Park visitor center, according to documents obtained by The Inquirer under the Freedom of Information Act.
Under the broad terms of the swap, announced last year, the park service will receive 78 acres of ARC-owned land, located largely within Valley Forge National Historical Park. In exchange, it will relinquish slightly less than an acre of Independence National Historical Park on the southeast corner of Third and Chestnut Streets, site of the old visitor center.
The park service estimates that the entire cost of the deal, including direct payments to ARC and building refurbishments by the park service, will be more than $6 million, according to the documents.