Fayetteville council approves land deal for affordable housing, moves lease policy to work session and confirms appointments

The Fayetteville City Council took several formal actions at its meeting.

Land deal for affordable housing: Redevelopment staff asked the council to authorize the city manager to sign an option-to-purchase agreement for 6.32 acres of the city's catalyst site (northeast portion near Merchant Road) to a developer partnered with the housing authority. Staff said the developer-provided appraisal returned a fair market value of $545,000 and the transaction relates to a prior $2.8 million loan for 84 affordable units. Council member Davis moved to authorize the city manager to execute the option-to-purchase; the clerk reported a unanimous vote and the motion carried.

Policy and transparency: Council considered policy 155-series items related to city-owned properties leased on a short-term basis to nonprofits and economic development organizations. Council member Green moved to approve the section with the addition of 'deed in lieu of foreclosure' as an acquisition option, while council member McMillan asked that the portion specifically related to the lease policy be sent to a January 5 work session for further transparency and accountability review. Both motions passed; the council noted staff will return with more detail at the work session.

Appointments: The council accepted the appointments committee’s nominations to multiple boards and commissions (nominations included Cheryl Thompson, Scott Kine, Laura Saunders, Tyra Kamaya, Andrea Ladano, Monique Hamilton and Eric Hugley). The clerk reported the vote as unanimous.

Consent and procedural votes: Council approved the meeting agenda and the consent agenda with a single item pulled for separate discussion; all votes recorded during the meeting were reported by the clerk as unanimous at the time of the meeting.