Some details
The vacant piece of land—designated for commercial use—was platted as part of the Orchard Park Subdivision. The property was conditionally removed from the floodplain through a Conditional Letter of Map Revision, or CLMOR, issued by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Significant grading issues to construct a buildable site make the property “financially unviable,” according to agenda documents, which is why the property owner had requested donating the land to Universal City’s Economic Development Corp., or UCEDC,.
Since the land donation was approved, the UCEDC will now be responsible for attorney fees and property title insurance. The UCEDC is also responsible for the outstanding 2025 tax bill at closing, which is about $2,122. However, the UCEDC plans to petition the tax assessor-collector for reimbursement of the taxes paid, agenda documents state.
The background
The UCEDC unanimously accepted the 2.5-acre land donation during a regular meeting Nov. 13, as previously reported by Community Impact. The corp. will look at development options in the future, City Manager Kim Turner said.
What the mayor is saying
Although the property was previously identified as being in a 100-year floodplain, Mayor Tom Maxwell told Community Impact he was happy to have the property.
"I'm very happy to have the property, we'll find some really good use for it, but we have to find something that is actually going to be right for that property and the community," Maxwell said.
