Council hears request to list 351 West Center Street as surplus; sale would require future vote

Tara Riddle, the city’s property administrator, asked the Provo Municipal Council on Jan. 27 to place a 2.952‑acre parcel in the Old City Center block, located at 351 West Center Street, on the city’s surplus property list. Riddle told the council the parcels were appraised in 2023 with two appraisals averaging “almost $7,000,000,” and that an RFP for the block’s development has already been released.

Riddle and council members emphasized that adding the parcel to the surplus property list is a procedural step that enables the city to begin discussions and, if necessary, negotiate in closed session. "This is just simply notifying the public that it's now considered surplus, and it's on the official surplus property list," Riddle said. Council members clarified that any eventual sale would still require a separate council vote.

Questions from council focused on the city’s prior history with the block and why the city is moving now to list the parcel as surplus. Riddle said previous RFP efforts two years ago did not progress to a sale, and that renewed interest and related conversations with development stakeholders prompted the current step. Several councilors asked for clarity that listing would not commit the council to any sale and were told it would not.

The council did not take a recorded final vote on the surplus listing during the discussion captured in the meeting transcript; staff indicated they will bring future sales or related actions back to the council for formal action.