Committee backs sale of city-owned 770 Park Avenue to M4 Properties

The County City Council Community Development Committee voted 6-0 Feb. 2 to recommend the sale of city-owned property at 770 Park Avenue to M4 Properties, whose principal, Reuben Medina, proposed renovating the house for market-rate rental use.

Dawn, a city staff member who presented the administrative review team’s findings, said the review panel determined the M4 Properties application met requirements and scored 55 points against a 50-point recommendation threshold. “He put together a budget that is about $75,000 that he plans to put into the house,” Dawn said, noting the figure was submitted without a deep forensic inspection of the structure.

Committee members discussed whether the deed or ordinance would include a requirement for substantial improvement and were told that the improved-lot process the city uses typically does not include a deed condition requiring improvements; noncompliance can be enforced later through citations or tax consequences. ECDA staff recounted past damage to the property, saying copper piping and fixtures were stolen during a break-in and that interior finishes were ruined, necessitating substantial repair.

Alderman Navarro moved to forward the sale to city council; Alderman Swanson seconded. A roll-call vote recorded six ayes and no recorded no votes. Chair noted the committee’s recommendation will be presented to the full city council that evening for final action.

Next steps: the recommendation will go to the city council for a final vote; the committee did not set additional conditions in the recommendation but said staff would confirm ordinance language before a deed is executed.

Provenance: discussion and motion presented and debated in SEG 772–SEG 937.