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Council approves airport hangar leases after reviewing disputed appraisals
Summary
After tenants questioned a $4.70-per-square-foot appraisal for municipal hangars, Boulder City council recessed to review two independent appraisals and then approved three-year leases with renewal options for 28 general-aviation hangars.
Boulder City council approved three-year leases (with a two-year renewal option) for 28 general-aviation hangars at the municipal airport after a public hearing and a staff briefing on independent appraisals.
Deputy City Manager Michael Maize told the council the city solicited two independent appraisals and averaged their results to set the lease rate, as required by city charter and state law. Tenants objected to the derived rate of $4.70 per square foot, saying they found lower hanger rents in nearby jurisdictions and asking the city to justify the comparables used by appraisers.
The council briefly recessed so members could review the two appraisal reports (Valbridge and Anderson Valuation Group). Staff explained that appraisers must seek market comparables for similar general-aviation facilities and adjust for size and use; examples cited in the reports included Henderson Executive and North Las Vegas, and, when needed to expand the pool of comparables, airports in other states were referenced.
During the public hearing tenant Roseanne Rabiola Millie said she had reviewed local listings and believed the citys resulting per-square-foot rate was too high for Boulder City renters. Another caller suggested operational steps such as better maintenance and surveillance, but staff emphasized the appraisal-based legal requirement for leasing at appraised value.
After reconsideration and the staff presentation on appraisal methodology, the council moved to approve bills 21104 through 2131 to formalize the longer-term hangar leases. Council members said they wanted additional transparency about appraisal comparables and asked staff to provide more detail in the future about how appraisers select and adjust comparables.
The councils action replaces month-to-month arrangements for most tenants with the negotiated three-year lease (plus two-year option) terms and staff indicated the leases incorporate tenant-requested changes such as modest tenant-improvement reimbursement and continued city maintenance of the hangars.
The council also agreed to make the appraisal reports available to members for review and to better explain the appraisal process in future rent-setting actions.
