8/23/11
Shorewood has purchased a second house. It's located on Smithtown Rd just a few doors west of the Legion and has been for sale for many months.
The Insider has learned that the sales price of $131,000 was Shorewood's second offer and below the owner's asking price. According to sources who should know, the house is to be torn down by the City. The land will be held in anticipation of the City making it available to a developer who might, in the future, develop the whole "Smithtown Crossing"" strip which extends to the corner where the old Bayt gas station is located.
Is this a good use of City funds? Maybe. The Planning Commission has been considering development options for this strip of land. They recommended the purchase as a step in making sure that a developer could acquire all the property needed to have a successful project. The City is using money from its infrastructure fund ($1.8 million) which is not earning much interest anyway.
Only time will tell if this is a good deal or another albatross. The City currently owns an albatross house next door to city hall. It was acquired by the Love/Lizee administration at nearly the peak of the housing market and is now worth considerably less. At least this new purchase will not have a house that the City has to try to rent and is at a price consistent with today's distressed real estate market.
Happy Reading!
The Insider
So these part-time amatuers now imagine themselves to be qualified real-estate speculators - with our money.
ReplyDeleteOne would think they could learn from the city's experience with the house next door to city hall. But why learn from history? Who cares?
As a tax payer in Shorewood, I am discusted with the waste of my tax dollars. As a military Veteran who is a member of the Legion, the city will have a huge fight on their hands, with the support of Veterans throughout the State and media outlets on this matter. I have been hearing of these dreams of a developer for many years, but as a real estate investor, this is not going to happen. Maybe 10 years from now if the economy turns around, a developer may consider buying some of the properties near the corner only. As shorewood resident, I was never informed of their intent to spend (waste) our tax dollars to purchase and tear down the old place. I wonder if the City Manager is pushing for this, where does he live....not in Shorewood!
ReplyDeleteAnother property taken off the tax rolls, placing a heavier burden on the rest of us.
ReplyDeleteEvidently some folks just don't trust the free market to operate naturally and their impatience leads them to short-circuit the process - at the expense of the people.
Insider: Can you please give us some background as to the discussion/logic/reasoning used to purchase the property? Or let us know where to find it?
ReplyDeleteThe property is too far from any potential development so it is clear that there is no benefit to the city. So whoe does benefit? That question needs to be asked any time Lizee and Zerby do something "creative".
ReplyDeleteCan you answer SmartVoter's questions?
ReplyDelete