An upcoming auction will determine who will be the new owner of Carroll County's Cozy Ridge Campground.
CARROLLTON In little more than a week, someone will be developing new plans for the Cozy Ridge Campground.
Rudolph Drnek currently owns the 49.2-acre camping site that will be auctioned at 5:30 p.m. June 12. Sitting in the 4100 block of Fresno Road NW in Carroll County's Harrison Township, Cozy Ridge is about four miles northwest of Carrollton.
"I am just getting out, too old," Drnek said of his reason for putting the campground up for sale. "I just want to retire."
Kiko Auctioneers & Realtors is handling the auction. The property includes a three-bedroom house, two fishing ponds, an in-ground pool and a picnic pavilion.
"It will only be sold as one parcel," said Theresa Blocher, an auctioneer and Realtor who will participate in the auction. "It is really suitable for all uses. It could be used for multiple range of use. It would be a great setting for a secluded hideaway for someone to build a home. It is only a 30-minute drive to Canton or New Philadelphia-Dover. But it has a secluded setting."
Because the land lacks public water or sanitary sewer, it is not expected that the new owner would carve Cozy Ridge up to create a residential subdivision.
Whatever becomes of Cozy Ridge after the sale, "I wouldn't want it to be a dump," Harrison Township Trustee Stanley George said. "We have no zoning."
No starting price
There is no starting price for the auction. But for tax purposes, Carroll County government has Cozy Ridge's appraised value set at $301,250.
The campground is equipped with 130 installed camping sites.
"It has showering (facilities) and a couple bath houses," said Wilber Birney, another auctioneer and Realtor who will help handle the auction. "A lot of people would say roughing it. Some say being close to nature."
Cozy Ridge sits next to another camping site, ABC Country Camping & Cabins, which also is in the 4100 block of Fresno Road NW.
"I probably have twice as much land," Drnek said. "But we probably get the same amount of campers."
Drnek acquired Cozy Ridge in the 1990s, according to Blocher, who described the site as "gently rolling" terrain.
The next owner could be "a church campground, a corporation," Blocher said.
"There is no zoning, so they can do almost anything they want. It will sell that day. It is an absolute auction, which means it will sell to the highest bidder regardless of price. It only take 15 to 20 minutes to sell it. The market right now is really a great investment. The last three months have really been good. The banks are really being good to buyers right now."
Reach Malcolm at 330-580-8305
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