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MELIA BOWIEConcerned that sellers raise prices when the city buys, New Port Richey's council decides to hire a go-between for bargaining.
NEW PORT RICHEY - When you're a city government trying to assemble land for redevelopment projects, negotiating can be tricky.
The asking price often goes up when a seller learns it is a city that is interested in the property, some council members said.
To counter that trend, New Port Richey is looking for a few good real estate agents to act on its behalf.
"The city doesn't want everyone in town to know who's buying property so that the price goes through the roof," city attorney Tom Morrison said.
So on Tuesday night, council members approved an amended ordinance that allows the city to contract with a real estate broker (or brokers) to scout out property and negotiate deals. They would then be able to represent the city as an "anonymous buyer."
Some council members say the change is a useful redevelopment tool. It also switches the burden of finding land from the city's redevelopment staff to real estate agents with greater experience and more contacts.
But council member Ginny Miller expressed hesitation about the change. She cast the lone dissenting vote on March 2 when the proposal first came up.
"I think it flies in the face of open government," she said. "I think the city should be competing as any buyer on any property."
Via the ordinance, the city would select real estate brokers the same way it picks other professional services, such as attorney, engineer, architect and land surveyor. New Port Richey would go out to bid for a real estate agent and would then enter into a contract with the lowest qualified bidder. A broker's commission rate would be set in the contract.
Council member Tom Finn said Tuesday that the move offers a solution to a pending problem.
Although city staffers had pinpointed sites they wanted to acquire as part of the city's five-year redevelopment plan, "there was no way to deal with the property owners," Finn said. "No way to approach them without flat out saying we're the city and we want to buy your property. So nothing's been bought."
Finn said hiring a broker to protect the city's identity in negotiations shouldn't "be an issue," he said. "Just because Donald Trump wants to buy land should it cost double?"
Morrison, the city attorney, said the change is meant to ensure fair market price. It does not violate the state's Sunshine or open records law, he said, adding once negotiations are complete and a broker gets a signature on a contract, the transaction is public record. The city then would be revealed as the buyer.