Portions of decommissioned South Jersey missile base sold

Remember last year I told you about a decommissioned missile base in South Jersey that was for sale? Well, part of it has been sold.

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the base, known as PH-58, housed Nike class missiles to protect the USA from Soviet missiles. There were 250 such bases around the country that were in use from the 1950s to the ‘70s. It’s in Woolwich Township, Gloucester County.

The whole base wasn’t for sale, however, just two tracts that don’t include the area where the missile silos were.

According to the Daily Journal, the area that was sold used to house the administrative offices of the base. The rest of the base “has remnants of its past: hatches that go down 30 feet to the missile vaults, four radio towers, a spare-parts building, a pump house, a mess hall, a drained swimming pool, quarters for officers and enlisted soldiers, a guard shack, and several sheds.”

The township bought the site from the federal government in 2009 for $828,000 and has been holding onto it since then.

The township had set the opening bid at $1.8 million and the two tracts sold for $2.7 million; the two parcels are approximately 14 acres, with the other 19 acres being retained by the township. The land that was sold is going to be home to a proposed warehouse.

According to the Daily Journal, the land became more attractive once the town agreed to extend sewer and water utilities to the parcels. The project is expected to be completed in 2022.

The post above reflects the thoughts and observations of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Bill Doyle. Any opinions expressed are Bill Doyle's own.