EAST LANSING, Mich. — East Lansing voters are advised that a question will be on the November 5, 2019 General Election ballot regarding voter authorization of the sale of all or a portion of a 26.83-acre, City-owned piece of unimproved land (unimproved except for two billboards) located at the southwest corner of the intersection of West and Coleman roads.
The land was purchased to protect a special assessment that was owed to the City of East Lansing by the previous owner, who was in tax foreclosure for several years due to unpaid property taxes. As is standard in these cases, Clinton County began making the annual payments owed to the City when each year’s tax bill went delinquent. Once the foreclosure was finalized, the County put the land up for sale. If the land were sold to a third party for less than what the County had paid the City, the City would have been required to pay back the difference and would not be able to recoup its costs through a potential future land sale. With that in mind, the City bid on the property and purchased it for $444,777.98. With voter approval, the East Lansing City Council would be permitted to sell all or a portion of the property for potentially more than the purchase price. Additional revenue from a potential land sale would be allocated to the City’s general fund.
The November 5, 2019 General Election ballot language will read as follows:
In an effort to recoup the purchase price for property that was purchased as the result of tax foreclosure proceedings, is the City Council authorized to sell all or a portion of the 26.83 acres of mostly vacant, unimproved property (unimproved except for two billboards) located at the southwest corner of the West Road and Coleman Road intersection in the northwest tier of the City?