Over the course of 2021 and going into 2022, the City of Jefferson has sold several vacant lots to adjacent residents or developers.

City Administrator Mike Palmer credits Building Official Chad Stevens for finding interested parties to take over the lots that the city has accumulated over the years. 

“The (City) Council, that’s been a priority. We have a lot of empty lots because we tore a lot of houses down. We tore a lot of houses down with grant money that we got through the federal system. So we’re sitting on these empty lots with no new property taxes coming in. So we have nothing into the lots, but we still have to mow them and shovel snow. It’s to our advantage to move them along.”

Palmer notes that the lots don’t sell for lots of money, typically the purchase price is between $250 and $500. He explains there is a caveat to when the City does sell a property to a purchaser.

“But it’s just not, ‘Get a lot.” The (purchase) price is contingent on you have to build a house, or build something on it, or incorporate it with your own lot to make it a bigger lot that you may want to expand your house on.”

Part of the process for the City to sell a lot is having a public hearing before the City Council can approve the purchase. The Council will consider selling four properties at their next regular meeting on January 11th. The public hearings and potential approvals are for the east 21-feet of 806 West Lincoln Way to Craig and Polly Kinsey, the rest of 806 and 808 West Lincoln Way to Justin Towers for a duplex, 407 West Lincoln Way to Ken and Sue Bose and 105 and 107 South Olive Street to developer Andy Rowland for a duplex.