Medina moves to put 410 East Smith Road out to public bid citing redevelopment constraints

City staff presented a draft bid package to put the city‑owned parcel at 410 East Smith Road out for public sale. The property, purchased by the city in 2012 and previously used for storage, has several physical constraints — Champion Creek bisects the parcel, a railroad line and an electrical substation limit developable area, and utility connections are expensive — and suffered fire damage to structures on site.

Staff told the committee they based the draft on a prior county bid model and listed a minimum bid tied to an appraisal at $355,000; they also recommended including temporary easements to allow the city to use the parcel as a laydown area during an upcoming E. Smith Road project, and noted other easements for creek maintenance and storm sewer access would remain. The committee discussed the parcel’s history in the comprehensive plan (where it had been identified as redevelopment land), prior interest from entities such as Habitat for Humanity and Medina Metropolitan Housing, and the reality that higher remediation, setbacks, and utility costs have made residential development financially infeasible in past proposals.

Council asked staff to move forward with public bidding to see what proposals the market generates while retaining provisions in the bid to protect city interests (access and maintenance easements, minimum bid and the option for rezoning applicants). The motion to put the parcel out for public bid passed.