Photo by Jon Anderson
Vestavia Hills City Council 11-23-15
The Vestavia Hills City Council meets in the new city hall on Monday, Nov. 23, 2015.
The Vestavia Hills City Council tonight authorized the city manager to proceed with selling a vacant residential lot the city obtained as the result of a public nuisance complaint for $45,000.
The lot at 2253 Great Rock Road is .39 acres and was obtained by the city as part of a settlement agreement in a lawsuit over public nuisance proceedings for the property, City Manager Jeff Downes said.
There was a dilapidated house on the property, and the city demolished it after gaining title to the property, Downes said. The lot has remained vacant ever since, and the city has been trying to sell it for six to eight months, he said.
Price Homes LLC has offered $45,000 for the property and plans to build a new house there, Downes said. There are two bank liens on the property totaling $17,500, so the net proceeds to the city would be $27,500, not including commission and legal fees associated with the city’s acquisition of the property, Downes said.
If legal fees were taken into account, the city has lost money on the property.
City attorney Patrick Boone said this property was one of the worst public nuisances he has ever seen. The city has a duty to protect the health, safety and welfare of the public, and “sometimes that costs money,” Boone said.
Vestavia Hills resident Carol Walker said she was disappointed to see the city accept only $45,000 for the lot. That hurts comparable sales for vacant lots in the city, she said.
Mayor Butch Zaragoza said that’s the most the city has been offered for the property and the national real estate firm representing the city recommended selling it for that price given the lack of a better offer and the irregular shape of the lot.
Councilman George Pierce said he knows surrounding residents are glad to know that a new home will be built on the property instead of it remaining vacant.
In other business tonight, the City Council declared a 1996 Fire Department pumper truck to be surplus and authorized city officials to sell it.
The Fire Department originally bought it new and has had it for 19 years, Assistant Fire Chief Terry Ray said. It has been used as a reserve truck in recent years, but the city bought a new pumper truck about two years ago, pushing another truck into reserve status and eliminating the need for the 1996 model, Ray said.
Ray said he hopes the city can sell it for $30,000. Downes said the last one sold by the city went for about $15,000.
The City Council also tonight approved a liquor license for the Fig Tree Café at 3160 Cahaba Heights Road.
