City of Ashland to sell real estate on Strawberry Lane

The city of Ashland is selling some of the real estate it owns on Strawberry Lane.

"Let's see how we do in the market," said Finance Director Lee Tuneberg, who will act as the purchasing agent for the city. "We budgeted for the revenue this year."

Two separate, half-acre parcels will be auctioned off to the highest sealed bidder on April 30. The city will not take bids less than $400,000 a piece.

"I have some measure of confidence they will sell," said Ashland Housing Specialist Brandon Goldman, "because we've had unsolicited offers in that range."

Another adjacent one-acre parcel on Strawberry Lane, will be subdivided in the future, and then those two will be auctioned as well, according to Goldman.

The money raised will be used to provide more affordable and/or workforce housing in Ashland, Goldman and Tuneberg said.

"I know the council has talked about using the money for affordable housing," Tuneberg said. "I guess you could say it's been earmarked."

$214,000 of the proceeds will be used to repay money borrowed from the general fund to pay back a federal Community Development Block Grant that was used to build the Grove, Goldman said.

Tuneberg said the city hopes to net between $1.2 and $1.6 million for the four parcels. "We're not sure at this point how much revenue is going to be generated," he said.

The city acquired 12.5 acres on Strawberry Lane in 1986. Initially it was to be used "in a land trade for property on Hitt Road" where there is a back-up reservoir, Goldman said. He added that Ashland was able to develop the back-up reservoir without flipping the Strawberry Lane parcel.

The parcel contained 10 acres on one side of Strawberry Lane, and 2.5 on the other. The 10 acre parcel was deeded to the Ashland Parks and Recreation Department, which plans to use it as open space or a park, according to Goldman.

In 1999, the parks department looked to earmark the 2.5-acre parcel as a park. A half acre was used to create part of the road there. In November of 2004, the Ashland Housing Commission asked the council to use the remaining land to create more workforce and/or affordable housing.

Staff writer Robert Plain can be reached at 482-3456 x. 226 or bplain@dailytidings.com.