Oxford Village is going to give selling 98 S. Glaspie St. another shot, but this time, it’s going to have some assistance from real estate professionals.
Last week, council voted 4-0 to approve a marketing and sales services proposal from Coldwell Banker Shooltz Realty for the former industrial property that the village purchased for $700,000 in March 2006.
The services will be provided by Broker/Owner Kathleen Sanchez and Realtor Lisa Forbes, the same duo that sold the township-owned Oxford Veterans Memorial Civic Center last year for $450,000.
The 98 S. Glaspie site is 3.42 acres and zoned for single family residential use. It contains two large industrial and warehouse buildings that are attached and total 21,815 square feet. There’s also a separate 822-square-foot building.
Sanchez told council it’s possible someone could renovate the existing building for light industrial use, but she believes constructing single family homes is “the highest and best use for that property.”
“I think that is probably the best way for us to market it,” she said.
Sanchez noted the homes built along the west side of S. Glaspie St. all “sold well,” so there’s no reason to believe homes on the east side wouldn’t be just as desirable to buyers.
“Yes, there’s some (where the) backyards will possibly back up to the (village) water (system facilities), but there’s some that are also going to have a beautiful view of (Round) lake,” she said.
Marketing 98 S. Glaspie St. as single family residential property puts it in the $200,000-to-$250,000 price range, according to Sanchez.
“The tear-down (of the existing buildings) that needs to happen over at 98 Glaspie is going to (have) an effect on the price,” Forbes noted.
In November 2012, village residents voted 1,069 to 521 to grant the municipality the authority to sell the site.
It appraised at $305,000 in 2014. That appraisal was based on the property being reused for industrial purposes.
Over the last few years, a number of parties have expressed interest in the site. They’ve wanted it for everything from light industrial use to an apartment complex for deaf and/or hard-of-hearing individuals age 55 and older.
Nothing ever came of these proposals.
In March, the village council rejected local developer Chuck Schneider’s controversial plan to build a 76-unit multiple-family housing project there. Schneider had a $225,000 purchase agreement in place with the municipality, but it was terminated at his request following the denial.
A number of village residents who live near the property previously expressed their desire to see the municipality keep the land and make it available to the public for recreational purposes.
But village officials made it clear, the municipality lacks the funds to do this.
There are also residents who prefer to see the property used for single family homes if it is sold and developed.
Village brings in pros to market, sell 98 S. Glaspie St. added by CJ Carnacchio on
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Why was this property purchased in the first place? There had to be a purpose behind spending $700k of taxpayer money on this property. Is that purpose being abandoned? It really only makes sense to bridge the park and the baseball fields. But $700k to do that when the buildings would also have to come down was reckless spending. Between this kind of thing and an overpriced water system, village houses are way undervalued as a result. I live in Oxford Lakes Estates. Our sub’s ammenities are unmatched, yet a place like Willow Lake is able to offer less and fetch more per square foot. This community isn’t worth the premium we pay to live here. Buyer behavior proves this. Our builder struggles to build and sell three houses a year. Willow Lake built and sold a few dozen last year.
As was stated in previous articles regarding this property, village officials said they purchased the land to prevent another industrial user from buying it and potentially contaminating the nearby wells that serve as the municipal water source. That was the rationale given back in 2006-07.