FORT APOPKA PROJECT - FINANCING

Fort Apopka Project – Financing

(Sales Comparison and Assessed Value of the land)

          

The asking price for approximately 12 lots of land surrounding Davies Court just south of the Bus Stop is $650, 000. 

      

However, there are some discrepancies as to how much the land is really worth.  Of the three owners, one of them is liquidating and willing to sell his four lots for $20,000 each.  He will let them all go for an asking price of $75,000, but indicates that he would probably accept a much lower offer as he is desperate to get out of it.  I think it could be easily bought for $50k or $60K at the most.

         

In the back three lots of that same row the owner is asking $100,000 per lot.  The front section across Davis Court and bordering Park Avenue has never been subdivided and the owner is also desperate to sell and will let the whole thing go for $275,000 asking price. 

        

Those same lots are appraised for $116,000 for tax purposes.

       

The lots of the same size across from the Bus Stop the owners want $500,000 for that size of lot. 

         

I believe that if the first transaction with the four front lots for $50,000 could be made, then it is fair to say that the current Market Value of the land is realistically $12,500 per lot because of its proximity to a largely undeveloped and  high crime area.  Plus, its current state is unsightly, and some work would have to be done to beautify it the area before building of the Fort could begin.

                  

At that point the current Market Value puts the back three lots at $37,500.  And since the parcel south of Davies Court is yet undivided but seems to extend to just two lots short of the road, it must be about equal to about 5 lots.  If that is true the Market Value of the land south of Davies Court is currently $62,500.

So, it seems to me that the fair market value of all three parcels must be about $150,000 rather than the $650,000 they are asking for it.

Even if you averages the Assessed Value ($116,000 per lot) with the Current Market Value ($20,000 per lot) to arrive at a figure in the middle for all three parcels it would only be $133,000 to buy all of the land. 

If the City of Apopka could not afford to buy it outright, then a private investment consortium could be put together of interested land owners, business owners, and private Citizens who could donate $1000 each to purchase the land for the Fort.  We would only need 140 donations of $1,000 each to reach our maximum cost to purchase the land.

Or the Consortium and the City could share the burden in some fashion.  Either way, the highest and best use of the land would be reached, and it would add to the value of the next block south, east, and across the Bus Stop and Train Tracks.  The return on the investment should be astronomical as land prices rise and development goes in to support the new increased vehicular and foot traffic in the area.

The benefit to the local economy would be a huge shot in the arm for downtown Apopka in terms of Jobs for South Apopka, and new money circulating in our downtown economy.