Business owners protest ‘cheap’ sale of industrial parcel

A couple of business owners along Reno Drive told the Wayland City Council Monday night they weren’t particularly pleased with its decision last month to sell a nearby 25-acre industrial parcel for only $20,000.

“When you sell it for $20,000 that devalues the property,” asserted Bruce Schwartz, owner of Wayland Do-It-Best Hardware. “So are we (neighboring business owners) going to get a tax break?”

City Manager Tim McLean said the assessor told him the properties along Reno Drive will not lose value as a result of the sale, which was less than one-third of the price the city paid for it almost 20 years ago.

“We’d had no interest in that property at all and it’s been listed for umpteen years,” Mayor Tim Bala said. “Selling it is better than letting it sit vacant.”

Schwartz nonetheless responded, “When you sell it that cheap, you set yourself up for bad precedent… My property taxes are well over that purchase price.”

The city April 17 agreed to sell the parcel, near the corner of Reno Drive and South Main Street, to developers Josh Otto of Dorr and Keith Nickels, a Wayland High School graduate. It wasn’t clear what they will do with the site, but it is zoned I-2, industrial.

Schwartz also accused the city of having the highest sewer and water hookup fees in the county.

Ben Frigmanski, owner of F & A Reno LLC, a grocery wholesale broker, said his biggest problem was the lack of transparency in the deal. He said he wasn’t pleased that the developers’ plans haven’t been revealed.

“The citizens of Wayland deserve more transparency for a project of this size,” he said. “Everything seems to be hush-hush. Some people have told me something doesn’t smell right.”

Councilwoman Jennifer Antel replied, “You bring up excellent points, but we haven’t had a lot of offers (for the property) over the last six to eight years… And the only control the council has (legally) is if the developers seek rezoning.”

Frigmanski shot back, “Your control is the sale price.”

Schwartz said the price was only about $800 an acre, while the listed price with the realtor was $50,000 an acre.

“If I had known the price would be $800 an acre, I’d have bought it,” Frigmanski said. “I think you owe it to neighboring local business owners to give them a chance.”
Schwartz insisted the agreement has not been signed as yet and he urged the council to put the parcel up for bid.

No action was taken by council.

In other business Monday night, the council:

• Agreed to a 3.48% raise for City Manager Tim McLean, who was hired at the beginning of 2016. His annual salary was bumped from $68,779 to $71,178.
• Appointed a committee to discuss and negotiate the recycling agreement with Republic and Allegan County Recycling Coordinator Ben Williams. The contract expires in October.
• Agreed to pay a little more than $3,000 for construction of compartment dressing rooms 72 inches high at the bathrooms next to the splash pad at City Park.
• Decided to pay Siegfried Crandall up to $11,000 per year to conduct the city’s audit from 2017 to 2019.
• Agreed to lease the upstairs offices above City Hall for an as yet undetermined price. The offices only recently were vacated.
• Noted the annual Mayor-Council Exchange will take place Friday, May 19. Local dignitaries will visit Lowell then and Lowell will come here in June.
• PHOTOS: Bruce Schwartz   Ben Frigmanski