Council adopts clearer surplus-property procedure after members flag 'wiggle room' in draft

The Perry City Council discussed and approved Resolution 20 25-19, described in the meeting materials as “a simple procedure for the disposal of surplus real property owned by the city,” which sets out declaration, valuation and disposal methods and permits limited adjustments to sales price to account for demolition, remediation or other conditions.

Council members and staff spent substantial time on valuation language in the draft resolution. Several members urged narrowing the policy’s discretion so that future sales would not be vulnerable to inconsistent choices among different valuation sources. One council member said the draft’s language — which allows the council to choose between the property-appraiser website, a broker’s price opinion or a private-owner appraisal — could be interpreted in varying ways depending on who sat on the council. Another speaker recommended using a licensed broker’s opinion as a reliable, low-cost valuation step for parcels under a dollar threshold and an appraisal for higher-value parcels.

The resolution, as presented, requires at least a public auction or sealed-bid process for most parcels and allows negotiated sales when public sales are impractical or the parcel benefits only adjacent property owners. It also permits the council to reduce the minimum sales price to account for demolition, tree removal, contamination remediation or other factors that reduce marketability; members discussed adding a numeric cap on that reduction (a suggestion of 10% of bare-market value was raised) but preserved some discretion to address unusual circumstances.

A council member noted that city-owned parcels often retain long-standing, low assessed values because they are not taxable and thus not reassessed frequently, and that a licensed broker’s opinion can help produce an up-to-date market comparison. The staff presentation emphasized that the goal of the resolution is to provide clarity for the public about how the city intends to value and dispose of surplus land.

The council voted to adopt the resolution and directed staff to proceed under the clarified procedures; staff said several pending transactions that began under the city’s prior practice would be handled under the existing policy where appropriate.

Next steps: staff will publish the adopted disposal procedure and apply it to future surplus declarations; the council asked staff to minimize future discretionary openings that could invite inconsistencies in valuation.

Source: staff presentation and council debate during the Aug. 26, 2025 Perry City Council meeting.