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City agrees to sell small downtown parcel; proceeds slated for affordable housing fund
Summary
The City of Sarasota approved a purchase-and-sale agreement for a 6,700-square-foot parcel at 400 Benjamin Franklin Drive to an adjacent property owner for $97,000, with proceeds directed to the city's Affordable Housing Trust Fund.
The Sarasota City Commission on Feb. 18 approved a purchase-and-sale agreement selling a small, city-owned parcel at 400 Benjamin Franklin Drive to Wilson AMI LLC for $97,000, a figure $16,000 above an independent appraisal.
The parcel is about 6,700 square feet and — according to city staff — has limited marketability because of its size, zoning and limits on ingress and egress. Wayne Appleby, the city’s economic development real estate manager, told commissioners the appraisal was reduced because "the site, as appraiser identified it as really unmarketable, because of its size, because limits for ingress and egress, and, the requirement, it's currently zoned G." The purchase price negotiated with the adjacent property owner was $97,000.
The sale was paired with a commission direction that the proceeds be deposited into the city’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund. Brenda Patton, attorney for the prospective buyer, said the parcel "has almost no environmental value" and that the buyer would pay $97,000 — more than the appraisal — and that the funds could support affordable housing efforts. Martin Hyde, a resident who spoke during public comment, urged the commission to seek a higher price, calling the appraisal and the negotiated price inadequate.
Commissioners debated the public-interest trade-offs of selling city land. After a failed motion earlier in the meeting to halt the sale, the commission later approved the purchase-and-sale agreement and the funding direction. The final approval passed 4–1.
The agreement will now proceed to closing under the terms presented to the commission; the sale price will be transferred to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund as directed.
Votes at a glance: The commission voted 4–1 to approve the purchase-and-sale agreement and to direct proceeds to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund.
What happens next: Staff and the city attorney will finalize closing documents and process the transfer of funds to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund. No dates for closing were specified in the public record from the meeting.
