Lehigh Valley developer David Jaindl bought 600 acres of farmland for $11 million to build warehouses. He just sold the land for $27 million.

Lehigh Valley developer David Jaindl has officially handed nearly 600 acres of farmland in Warren County, New Jersey, over for preservation, ending years of residents’ push against plans for large-scale warehouses.

Jaindl declined to disclose the sale price, but the New Jersey Agriculture Department said Thursday it is paying $27.2 million for the property, which sits off a state route in White Township. Jaindl bought the land from Talen Energy for approximately $11.3 million in February 2019.

Jaindl met Thursday with state, county and local officials at the farm site to herald completion of the transaction. Last year, New Jersey officials with the State Agriculture Development Committee, which administers the state’s farmland preservation program, approached Jaindl about acquiring the entire property,

“Our original plan was to develop approximately half of this site with the permitted industrial ‘use’ and preserve the balance of the property,” Jaindl said in a news release. “As farmers and developers, we recognize the need for a fair balance between the two.”

However, Jaindl said, the state’s offer was “consistent with community and statewide land preservation goals.” He also previously said the company wanted to focus on its Pennsylvania projects. County residents had fought Jaindl’s development proposal almost from the outset.

State officials, in a separate news release, said they anticipate retaining ownership of the 566 acres until the land is offered as permanently preserved farmland and returned to private ownership.

The Jaindl family owns and farms approximately 13,000 acres in the Lehigh Valley, 10% of which are preserved lands.