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Bayfield County committee accepts high timber bids, will re-offer 11 unsold tracts as stumpage revenue lags
Summary
Bayfield County accepted high bids on 21 of 32 spring timber-sale tracts and voted to immediately re-offer the 11 unsold tracts; staff warned that stumpage returns are running well below prior years and recommended tightening the 2027 budget.
The Bayfield County Forestry and Parks Committee on May 11 accepted high bids on the majority of its spring timber-sale offerings and approved re-offering 11 tracts that received no bids.
Administrator Jason Bodine told the committee the 2026 spring offering included 32 sales covering 1,748 acres with a minimum combined bid value of roughly $1.14 million; 21 tracts received bids totaling over $1.5 million while 11 tracts received no bids. Bodine recommended the unsold tracts be immediately re-offered, and the committee approved that recommendation by motion.
The decision came amid a larger concern about timber-revenue performance. Bodine reported stumpage revenue for April was just under $106,000 and total stumpage returns at the end of April were nearly $782,000 — roughly 46% lower than this time last year, 45% below the three-year average for end of April, and 35% below the current budget. To respond, he said staff will pause some spending, postpone lower-priority capital projects and tighten expenses while recommending a reduced stumpage-revenue assumption for the 2027 budget unless market conditions improve.
Public comment included remarks from Michael Radtke, who spoke in opposition to the previously approved timber sale located within the Ashwabay Scientific and Natural Area and opposed future timber management in that area. The committee did not alter the approved sale based on that comment but still moved forward with the re-offer plan for unsold tracts.
Bodine also noted the county has seen a small carbon-sale payment of roughly $10,000 in late April and that just over $2.3 million in carbon revenue has been received so far this year, figures he said factor into broader budgeting and program decisions.
The committee voted to accept the high bids and re-offer the unsold tracts. The committee did not take final budget votes at the meeting; Bodine said the stumpage trends will likely influence 2027 budget preparation and staff recommended a conservative approach.
