Council approves land sale
This is a view of the 16.49 acres of property (southeast to northeast) on the city’s southwest side that was sold Monday night to Nick Johnson of Humboldt, following a public hearing and a 40-minute closed session. No details of the discussion were revealed but the Council did vote unanimously to sell the property to Johnson for a purchase price of $222,750, $33,250 below the appraised value. Photo courtesy of the city of Humboldt.
By KENT THOMPSON
The Humboldt City Council has unanimously agreed to sell 16.49 acres of undeveloped property which lies east of 10th Street SW and south of 14th Avenue SW.
The action came after a public hearing on the matter and then a 40-minute closed session with City Attorney Eric Eide of Des Moines via telephone. The Council went into closed session under Iowa Open Meetings law 21.5 (1) [j]. Article [j] states that a public body may enter into closed session to discuss the purchase or sale of real estate only where premature disclosure could reasonably expect to increase the price a government body would have to pay for property or reduce the price the government body would receive.
The city received one lone bid for the property, that coming from neighboring property owner Nick Johnson of Humboldt, in the amount of $222,750. The property, which is zoned as single-family residential, was appraised in June of 2021, at $256,000.
Second Ward Council member John Sleiter approved a resolution accepting the lone offer with at large Council member Jeff Harklau seconding. The resolution was passed 5-0, subject to reserving all city easements per recommended by the city engineer.
The Council approved a number of other resolutions. Read about it in this week's Humboldt Independent.
