Hayden council endorses offer to buy 3.2 acres by airport, declares 4.85-acre site surplus and hires appraiser

Hayden City Council on Feb. 25 authorized staff to send an offer letter to Kootenai County for the purchase of approximately 3.2 acres commonly known as the Lakes Highway District facility adjacent to the airport, and took two related actions: the council declared roughly 4.85 acres of city-owned property off Dakota Street as underutilized and authorized a third-party appraisal engagement with Valbridge Property Advisors to establish a minimum selling price.

Council members discussed the background: the city owns two buildings on the 3.2-acre site but not the underlying land. The county had provided an interest letter and a recent market evaluation; staff explained the city could use proceeds from a separate 5-acre parcel the city owns (acquired about 10 years earlier) to fund the purchase, or the council could make the offer contingent on a later sale of that 5-acre parcel. Staff also explained the county recently used a 90% of fair-market-value approach on a comparable transaction, and the proposed offer in the packet adjusts for square-foot calculations the staff believed were overstated in the county materials.

Council made three motions. First, the council moved to identify the per-square-foot amount shown in the memorandum and send the offer letter to Kootenai County; the motion passed unanimously on a roll-call vote. Second, the council declared the city—s approximately 4.85-acre parcel off Dakota Street as underutilized and expressed intent to sell it, a formal step required under Idaho Code Title 50, Chapter 14; that motion passed unanimously. Third, council authorized the city administrator to sign an engagement letter with Valbridge Property Advisors to set a fair market value for the 4.85-acre parcel; that motion also passed unanimously.

Staff explained the surplus process under Idaho law: after declaring the property underutilized, the city must obtain a fair-market appraisal, set a minimum value (often via a minimum bid), hold required public notices and a public sale or auction; if bids do not meet the minimum, the council may choose alternative sale paths. Staff recommended separating the declaration of intent to sell from establishing the minimum value to allow clarity before committing appraisal resources.

Council members cited financial prudence and the desire to avoid uncertain lease terms at the airport as reasons to pursue purchase of the land beneath the city-owned buildings. Staff will return with appraisal results from Valbridge, and the council will later consider minimum-bid recommendations and the formal sale process for the Dakota Street parcel.