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Washington Evening Journal
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Washington, IA 52353
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Washington looks to free up city-owned lot
The house is for sale, the land beneath it is not
WASHINGTON — A house in Washington could be yours for as little as $1, if you’re willing to pick it up and move it somewhere else.
That’s the pitch from city council members in Washington, who hope to sell structures and scrap materials on a city-owned lot at 2550 Highway 1 South, but not the real estate underneath it. A recent review found much of the property in disrepair.
The city has owned the farmhouse since at least 2017 according to GIS records, and rented it out to tenants until “over a year ago,” according to staff, but stopped after the last occupants moved out. A tour of the property last week revealed that the furnace and air conditioning unit were missing from the premises, and one contractor’s estimate said fixing damage to the roof and porch would take a combined $8,700.
A memo to council members from City Administrator Deanna McCusker for the group’s Oct. 3 meeting said the city could feasibly repair the property’s exterior with $20,000 of extra cash in the general fund, or by recouping costs within a year if it resumed renting at a rate of $800 a month.
Council members said they were skeptical of those options. Most said the city should get the buildings out of its hair, one way or another.
“First of all, we shouldn’t even be in the landlord business,” Council Member Elaine Moore said. “Second of all, the poor house is not worth fixing up … my suggestion would be either tearing it down, or selling it to somebody to move.”
Municipal decision-makers said they’d agree to sell the house for $1 to anyone willing to move it off the property, rather than tearing it down. Another motion offered a similar arrangement for a silo on the premises, as well as the scrap materials from a dilapidated barn and partially collapsed hog building.
Council Member Bethany Glinsmann was among the unanimous votes in favor of both motions.
“It’s got some good bones on it,” she said. “I think it’s worth putting an offer out there, before we just tear it down.”
Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com
