Saturday, March 10, 2007

When it's not your money....

Resident gazette bulldog Pam Zubeck (who's one heck of a reporter) filed this story today on how the city seems to be trying to cover its tracks for trying to buy a trail corridor for 10 times it's assessed value.

What’s this trail land really worth?
By PAM ZUBECK THE GAZETTE
March 10, 2007 - 1:11AM

The city’s first appraisal of Rock Island Trail Corridor land set its value at a fraction of the amount the city has agreed to pay, the city’s former real estate manager said Friday.

Betty Clark-Wine, who has sued the city for wrongful dismissal in connection with her December 2005 termination, said an appraiser set the value of the 28.35 acres at 30 to 35 cents per square foot.

That’s about 15 percent to 17 percent of the $2.47 million the city agreed to pay the Colorado Springs & Eastern Railroad Co., owned by Evelyn Jane Lawrence.

The city had refused to release that appraisal and other documents surrounding the deal, citing a provision in the Colorado Open Records Act that gives the custodian discretion in releasing appraisals until title transfers.

But in a surprise move late Friday, the city released a more recent appraisal that set the price at precisely the amount the city agreed to pay.

Read the rest at www.gazette.com

No comments: