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While we agree that partitioning the land into smaller
parcels would reduce the overall discount, we do not think that
partitioning the land is appropriate in the present case. Given
the depressed market and lack of demand for timberland in 1985,
we do not see how partitioning the land into smaller parcels
would significantly shorten the liquidation period for the
property. Moreover, the owner would incur additional costs in
partitioning and selling multiple parcels of land. The evidence
indicates that while smaller buyers were entering the timberland
market in 1986 and later, the most likely buyers in 1985 were
large, industrial buyers. Accordingly, we shall consider the
value of the timberland as if it were sold as a single parcel.
Viewing the sale as such, we believe that a 39-percent discount
would be appropriate.
The parties’ experts also disagree upon the classification
of reproduction timber. The optimal harvest age for softwood
timber was 50 years. Both parties' experts assumed for purposes
of applying their discounted cash-flow analyses that reproduction
timber would be held to age 50. The difference lies in the
experts’ treatment of timber between the ages of 40 and 49 years.
Mr. Prochnau, respondent’s expert, treated the timber falling in
the 40-49 age group as reproduction timber.10 Mr. Granvall,
10Actually, Mr. Prochnau classified softwood timber under 50
years into two categories--timber between 30 and 49 years was
classified as "immature", and timber less than 30 years was
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