Branstads plan to lease property to Postal Service

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By Barb Ickes | Wednesday, July 9, 2008 12:10 AM CDT | () comments

Former Iowa Governor Terry Branstad. (FILE PHOTO) Buy this Photo

LeCLAIRE, Iowa — Former Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad and his wife, Christine, have bought a piece of property in LeClaire, but don’t expect the couple to be spotted around town.

The former governor and current president of Des Moines University, along with his wife, bought the land and building occupied by the post office at

310 Jones St. The couple has no plans for the site except to

continue leasing it to the U.S. Postal Service as an investment property.

Branstad said he is co-owner of 11 post offices in Iowa, and the LeClaire property is his most recent acquisition.

He discovered the financial benefits of buying post offices about 30 years ago, he said, naming three specific reasons why the investment is particularly sound: “You have a reliable tenant, you have a long-term lease and the tenants don’t trash the property.”

The former Iowa first couple paid $180,000 for the building and grounds, which is about $8,000 shy of the assessed value, according to Scott County records. Branstad, who served four terms as Iowa governor from 1983 to 1999, said his lease in LeClaire calls for rental payments amounting to $14,340 annually.

The lease runs from 2007 to 2012, and the Postal Service has a renewal option for 2012-2017. Most post offices lease for five-year terms, he said, with some newer buildings operating on 10-year leases.

In many cases, Branstad said, property owners are able to negotiate with the Postal Service for reimbursement of property taxes.

“A reimbursement clause often means you are protected,” he said. “In one post office, we bought it, and the property taxes tripled the first year because it hadn’t been assessed in so many years.

“Over the years, my wife and I have systematically acquired post offices.”

When the LeClaire property became available, the couple jumped on it.

“I love LeClaire,” Branstad said, asking, “Is Sneaky Pete’s (restaurant and bar) still there? I donated a tie to that place.”

He said many people are unaware that most post offices across the country are privately owned, adding, “And that’s good because they’re on the tax rolls.”

The fact that the former governor is the latest LeClaire landlord came as a surprise Tuesday to Mayor Bob Scannell and City Administrator Ed Choate.

“That’s a kick in the pants — that I didn’t even know about it,” Scannell said.

The mayor said he read the Branstad name in the real estate deeds section of the Quad-City Times but presumed it was a coincidence.

“You can’t get much farther away from Des Moines unless you go to Clinton,” he said. “I hope they’re not going to move the post office.”

Choate instantly guessed the former governor’s interest in the property, telling the mayor, “I would imagine he bought it as an investment property.”

Although the investments have proved profitable, Branstad said, they are not without risk.

“We bought the one in Exira (Iowa) and we ended up having termites,” he said. “And it was a block building.”

Barb Ickes can be contacted at (563) 383-2316 or bickes@qctimes.com.