Doctor buys Houghton's Star Lake campus

STAR LAKE — A doctor at Clifton-Fine Hospital and his family expect to close on Houghton College's 40-acre campus here around Christmas.

"As soon as we found out they wanted to sell it, we put a bid in," said William C. Stief, an emergency room doctor. "We're going to rent it out, but we're not going to have our own food service. We'll rent out the cabins and the pavilion. We might even advertise in New York City."

The Willard J. Houghton Foundation purchased the campus for $425,000 in 2001 from Potsdam Auxiliary and College Educational Services, a private corporation that supports programs at SUNY Potsdam. Houghton, a Christian school in Allegany County, ran an academic program at Star Lake on environment and culture.

The school announced this summer its intent to sell the campus and listed it for $799,000. According to the description offered by LaValley Real Estate, the property has 311 feet on the shore of Star Lake and has 17 buildings, including a main lodge, a classroom facility, six cottages, a home for a property manager, a maintenance garage, recreation building, Laundromat, pavilion, boathouse and other outbuildings.

Dr. Stief declined to reveal the purchase price.

Houghton has declined comment on potential buyers until the deal is finalized.

The school said it would not run its Star Lake program after this fall's semester ended regardless of whether it had a buyer.

"We can't commit to the program if we don't have the facility," Houghton spokeswoman Sharon L. Myers said. "The idea is to be very strategic in what we're offering and where we're offering it."

The program's two primary professors are trying to locate the program elsewhere but haven't locked down a site yet, said Terry L. Borrowman, the property manager.

Mr. Borrowman, who is looking for another job, was the property's only full-time employee. There were several other seasonal workers.

Dr. Stief said he and his wife, Ann M., didn't want to close on the sale until the semester was over.

"We actually were in no big hurry, because they had students until Friday," he said.

Dr. Stief said he eventually wants to sell his house a mile away and move temporarily into the back of the lodge until his family can build a house on the land.

He said the property could be rented for weddings, family reunions, business meetings or other purposes.