The KOA campground in northern Lebanon County has been sold to a private equity firm.
The campground property at 11 Lickdale Road was recorded as being sold last month by Kyle A. and Tamara J. Boltz to Cedarline Pa SubCo LLC for a little over $3.5 million.
Cedarline Pa SubCo LLC is a Pennsylvania LLC registered by Jaime Yelvington, an operating partner at Cedarline Outdoor, according to Yelvington’s LinkedIn profile.
It’s apparently the third acquisition by the company, described as an “outdoor hospitality investment platform focused on the RV park industry” in the January 2022 press release announcing its creation by private equity firm Halmos Capital Partners.
“RV parks are a critical component of the North American vacation landscape,” said Halmos partner Daniel Adan in the release. “These assets have proven their resiliency throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and we believe the next-generation of American families have embraced this travel option, creating long-term sustainable growth for the sector.”
With consolidation having been historically limited in an industry known for family-owned and affordable campgrounds, the campground market went from moderate activity to hyper-activity in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cedarline’s first two acquisitions were KOA campgrounds in New Hampshire (Twin Mountain and Littleton).
Mirroring a dynamic seen in other agricultural domains, campground owners are now being offered multiples of what they purchased properties for – prices far from affordable for the next generation to takeover, according to one industry analyst, with others noting that investment demand for campsites remained extraordinarily high over this past summer.
As for the Jonestown campground, outside of the real estate transfer, which is public record, terms of the deal have not been disclosed, and emails to Cedarline Outdoor had not received a response as of publication time.
Operations have since officially transferred hands, with a change of owner food safety inspection having taken place at the campgrounds on Nov. 7.
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