LAKELAND | The manager of Lakeland Linder Regional Airport has reached a tentative agreement to buy 31.22 acres of vacant land next to the airport from Tax Collector Joe G. Tedder and his business partners for $1.75 million.
If approved by the City Commission in January, $1.275 million in Florida Department of Transportation grants would help pay for the land.
Earlier this month, commissioners gave their approval to city officials to negotiate a price in light of the state's contribution.
City Manager Doug Thomas told commissioners it was smart to secure property around the airport when it becomes available.
The state can make $500,000 available toward the purchase in this fiscal year; the remaining $775,000 would be available in the fiscal year beginning in 2018.
If city commissioners approve the deal, the city will need to fund the interim period through 2018 in addition to its $475,000 stake in the purchase.
A financing plan will be presented to the commission alongside the purchase agreement.
The property's deed currently is held by Medulla 30, a limited-liability corporation jointly managed by Tedder, Greg Masters, the co-founder of Southern Homes of Polk County and Janice Tedder Jones.
Jones is Tedder's sister and a partner at the CliftonLarsonAllen accounting firm in Lakeland, Medulla 30's listed address. The property lies between Medulla Road and the airport's southwestern boundary.
Tedder referred all questions about the transaction to the city, saying his part in the transaction was as a resident with a private business interest and not as a public official. Tedder has been Polk County's tax collector since 1996.
According to county records, Tedder originally purchased the land in December 2005 through his limited-liability corporation, JBT Properties, for an estimated $1.077 million. He then sold a half-stake in the property to Masters in early 2006 for an estimated $549,300.
Immediately afterward, both half-owners sold their stakes to Medulla 30, a new, jointly-managed corp-oration.
Tedder and his business partners knew the city had identified the property as a desirable acquisition in its airport master plan and let the city know they would sell before listing the parcel on the open market, Deputy City Manager Tony Delgado said.
Masters said, "We just wanted to be good neighbors."
"We had this piece of property we bought way back when, the economy is turning around, we were dusting it off and trying to figure out what we wanted to do with it," he said. "We checked with the city and saw if they had an interest.
If the city did not want the property, the business partners were considering a mixed-use development, but they didn't want to go all in until they could verify the city's intentions.
The property was independently appraised at $1.84 million, Airport Director Gene Conrad said.
A purpose for the property has not been decided, Delgado said, but the city has an interest in securing land around the airport under FAA guidance for a noise buffer and to keep flight paths clear.
Properties to the east and west of 31.22 acre parcel have also been identified in the airport's master development plan.
Story and Comments: http://www.theledger.com
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment