(Enlarge) Fred Ptashchek, commander of American Legion Post 22, stands outside the Towson landmark that was built in the early 1950s. Revenue from fundraisers, rental of the post’s grand hall and parking spaces enables the post to donate thousands of dollars to charities and veterans causes, Ptashchek said. (Staff photo by Steve ruark )

In these tough economic times, who's sitting on a gold mine in downtown Towson and, despite various lucrative offers, hasn't budged -- in fact, has no plans to budge any time soon?

Answer: Towson American Legion Post 22, at 125 York Road.

The post, which has more than 400 members, owns 5.5 acres of prime real estate just south of Towsontown Boulevard.

"People thought we were crazy when we bought the property in 1949," said Post 22 Commander Fred Ptashchek. "It was a former nursery, and we paid $40,000."

It used to be at street level, he said. Now the post home and its 200-space parking lot lie in the valley created by the construction of Towsontown Boulevard.

Set back from York Road, the two-story post home is no beauty. It was the style when it was built in the early 1950s, according to Ptashchek -- if painted white concrete landscaped with a few spare bushes could be considered a style.

But the building serves the post well, and not just because of the bar and lounge area on the first floor.

The grand hall on the second floor has been booked solid for years -- all by word of mouth. It produces a stream of revenue as the site of the post's own fundraisers -- crab feasts, bull roasts, spaghetti dinners -- and as a rental facility for wedding receptions, large gatherings and social events.

"It's as solid as (Gen. Norman) Schwarzkopf," Ptashchek said. "It's so well constructed you could drive a truck across the floor."

The parking spaces also are a source of revenue. The post rents out a number of them to nearby businesses.

Since 2000, the stream of revenue has enabled the post to donate more than $135,000 to a hundred nonprofits and charities, including the Towson Area Fourth of July Parade and the Towsontown Spring Festival, plus "tens of thousands of dollars every year" go to veterans' programs, he said.

"We donate all the money we raise beyond operating expenses -- every single penny," Ptashchek said.

Since this is the week we celebrate Veterans Day and this is Towson's largest veterans' organization, we asked Ptashchek about the post's past and its future prospects.

How old is Post 22?

According to the post's history, Towson was a small village with horse-drawn carriages and motor cars vying for road space in 1919, when a group of World War I veterans met in the main courtroom of the Towson Courthouse to discuss the formation of a post for what was then a new organization called the American Legion.

The group immediately began raising money to build a home for the post and the Towson American Legion Post 22 received its charter in 1923.

It was one of the first posts in the country.

Is Post 22 going to endure, considering how various service groups are experiencing waning membership because older vets are dying off?

"Veterans are not joining in great numbers now, but our numbers are solid because of all the active-duty units deployed from the Towson area. Young guys are serving now.

"Thanks to improvements in emergency medical care, guys who would have died at war are surviving.

"Our post is healthy financially and membership-wise -- but we always are open to attracting new members."

Does Post 22 have a drum and bagpipe band?

Yes and No. The John F. Nicoll Pipe Band has made the post its home. The band, which is not part of the legion -- though some of its members belong to the legion -- pays rent for space to practice by performing at legion ceremonies and events.

"We're two unrelated children who live together in one big happy family," said band member Bob Erlandson of Towson.

Does the post plan to sell its property and rebuild elsewhere?

"We've entertained a couple of offers to sell and relocate," Ptashchek said, noting Towson University would like to have the property and private developers have come in with a couple of ideas, including a senior retirement facility and a mix of condos and shops.

One offer involved "tens of millions of dollars," he said. "But we're in no big hurry to move. We like it here. It's our little oasis in Towson."

But he also knows that the members of the post are split about 50-50 over selling. "It may be that down the line we'll be going," he said. "If it does happen, we would want to stay in the greater Towson area."

Are the members of the American Legion just a bunch of buddies out for a good time?

"We have the bar open every day. Members and guests can have a beer and watch a game. There's a lot of camaraderie when we are renting out the hall and running affairs.

"But the legion's most important legacy is to see that the nation's veterans are looked after properly. Do you know that if it weren't for the legion, there wouldn't even be a Veterans Administration?"

Linda Bishop, a previous post commander -- points out that some people mistakenly assume the only veterans the legion is talking about are the elderly denizens of veterans' hospitals.

But the legion is fighting for legislation that would serve veterans from all the recent conflicts, including the Iraq war as well, Bishop said.

"We want to make sure these veterans get everything they deserve," she said.

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