The sprawling South County military base was closed as part ofthe defense cutbacks during the 1990s. As the base's new landlord,the board's tenants include small businesses, farmers and evenpeople who need space to park their recreational vehicles.

County staffers have suggested that many of those leaseagreements are at rates that are far below those charged byprivate-sector landlords. So on Friday, supervisors ordered theirstaff to perform a market study and to come back with suggestionsto wring more money out of the property.

The board's order also directs staff to recommend ways to putmore of the property to use. The county currently utilizes only afraction of the hundreds of buildings at the massive base, whichincludes more than 800 homes that currently stand empty. Thosehouses and apartments could conceivably be sold to buyers or rentedto tenants.