What Members Have Not Been Told
- 1
AMA Has Confirmed It Is Weighing a Sale of Its Headquarters
On October 9, 2026, AMA President Greg Stone emailed all members that AMA "is evaluating an opportunity involving this property," the International Aeromodeling Center. The email came only after, in its own words, information about a possible sale "has started to reach some of you." Source: AMA email to members, Oct. 9, 2026
- 2
No Terms. No Reasons.
The Executive Council has given no indication of the possible terms. AMA says confidentiality is standard practice, but general terms can be shared without naming a buyer. And nothing prevents the Council from explaining why it believes this transaction would benefit the membership. Source: AMA email to members, Oct. 9, 2026
- 3
No Plan for What Comes Next
If a deal goes through, what is the timeline? Where would AMA Headquarters, the Museum, and the Nats go? Who decides? AMA's email does not say. Source: AMA email to members, Oct. 9, 2026
- 4
Who Is Advising the Council?
A sale of this size and complexity calls for experienced advisers. Members have not been told who AMA's legal counsel is, or whether counsel has the experience and negotiating strength to get the most value for AMA if the Council and the membership approve a sale.
- 5
No Pledge of a Member Vote
AMA's email does not commit to putting a sale to the members. AMA's bylaws and its federal tax return both state that AMA is a District of Columbia nonprofit corporation (Indiana lists it as a foreign, out-of-state, nonprofit registered to operate there), and AMA's Adult Members elect the Executive Council. Under the D.C. Nonprofit Corporation Act, a sale of a nonprofit's assets outside its usual and regular course requires the approval of its members, unless the articles of incorporation or bylaws provide otherwise or the corporation keeps an activity representing at least a third of its total assets. We have found nothing in AMA's bylaws that removes that requirement. Whether the exception applies depends on AMA's finances, which members have not seen. Members should be told whether the Council believes a member vote is required, and if not, why not. Source: D.C. Code § 29-410.02 Source: D.C. Code § 29-410.01 (exceptions) Source: D.C. Code § 29-401.02 (who counts as a member) Source: AMA Form 990 for 2023, line M (legal domicile: DC) Source: Indiana Secretary of State, INBiz (search "Academy of Model Aeronautics") Source: AMA Bylaws, Art. I § 3 and Art. IX § 5 (AMA login required)
What Is the Land Worth?
EstimateAMA's 2023 tax return carries the land at $1,873,580, with the buildings at about $1.3 million after depreciation. That is what the land cost, not what it would sell for.
Source: AMA Form 990 for 2023, Schedule DDelaware County farmland sold for an average of $13,794 per acre in 2025, according to a farmland brokerage's 2026 county report. At about 1,000 to 1,100 acres, that is the land alone, before the headquarters, the museum, or the flying-site improvements.
Source: Delaware County 2026 Land Values and Sales Report Source: AMA, About the IAC (acreage)If the buyer is a data center developer, as members have reported, the price could be well above farmland value. Developers need large single parcels with power and fiber, and assembling 1,000 acres from separate farms is slow and public. In 2024 Amazon announced an $11 billion data center campus in New Carlisle, Indiana. In our view, a premium of two to three times farmland value would not be surprising.
Source: Associated Press, Apr. 25, 2024The gap between what the land cost and what it could sell for is why members need to know who is negotiating for AMA, and what AMA is being offered.
Reported, Not Confirmed
Members have reported that the prospective buyer is a data center developer. AMA has not named a buyer, said how the land would be used, or said whether the whole property is involved. We will update this page if AMA or a published source confirms these details.
Takes a minute. Goes to the Executive Director and the full Executive Council.
Your Letter Also Calls a Special Membership Meeting
AMA's bylaws say the Executive Council shall call a special membership meeting when 5% of the voting members ask in writing. Every letter sent from this site includes that written request. The meeting would inform members about any proposed sale and consider a resolution that no sale be finalized without the members' approval.
Source: AMA Bylaws, membership meeting provisions (AMA login required).
The Member Committee
If members force a special meeting, someone has to speak for them. The Member Committee will draft the members' resolution, press for remote attendance and voting, present at the meeting, and be the Council's point of contact beforehand. A sale of this size calls for people who have done deals of this size.
Who Can Serve
- A current AMA Adult Member in good standing.
- Legal, real estate development, or real estate sales experience on sales of real property valued at more than $20 million.
- Willing to be named publicly on this site, with a short bio, if selected.
Applications go privately to the campaign organizers.