Developer disputes Hernando County land values for four adjacent parcels; magistrate cites moratorium and utility costs as complicating factors

Conan Graham Inc. (represented by Chris Graham) told a Hernando County special magistrate on Oct. 17 that four adjacent parcels purchased together in February 2024 for $1,000,000 reflect the best evidence of market value and that the county's per-acre analysis overstates usable acreage and therefore value. The magistrate allowed oral and written rebuttal, explored whether the subject purchase was an arm's-length bulk sale, and said he would review the evidence before issuing a recommendation.

Chris Graham said the four parcels (key numbers reported in the record as 00357508, 00357946, 00361539 and 00362093) were bought together for $1,000,000 in February 2024 and that the county's combined assessed value exceeds $2,000,000. "This is the best evidence of fair market value," Graham said in his presentation, arguing the assessor's comparables are not comparable because they include high-value commercial frontage tracts with full utilities, while the subject parcels contain substantial wetlands and face a city wastewater moratorium.

The petitioner…