Clearly many citizens and the business community are not pleased that the Mayor and majority of the Salisbury City Council are trying to do, selling off the old Fire Station 16 for $100,000.00 is just wrong in so many ways. Recently Salisbury News learned that the purchasers are wanting to set up a non profit, which will relieve them of property tax as well.
I'm sure many of you are familiar with the old Parsonsburg Fire Station. Well, would YOU like to buy it. It is now for sale. Just
GO HERE and it's all yours for $279,000.00.
As many of you know, I used to own the building now known as Station 7 Restaurant in Pittsville. The building was sold for more than $350,000.00.
Again, BEFORE the former Mayor Tilghman and City Council created legislation to keep Joe Albero from purchasing Station 16, I offered $250,000.00 CASH for that building. Gary Comegys, (V.P. of the City Council) went on the record stating he refused to allow me to purchase that building.
When you buy or sell a piece of property, you do expect them to use comps, right? After all, the old Station 16 was appraised at $750,000.00 to $850,000.00.
YOU start doing the math.
21 comments:
This tsunami of foolishness by your blog readers about the prospective real world price of this station is apparently unending. There are professional arms length appraisals which use valid comparables and analytical methodologies, and then there are sloppy appraisals done by barely qualified appraisers which are effectively crafted to order at a specific price range. If you doubt this you are living in a naive real estate fantasy world.
Here's what you need to do. Get... no DEMAND, a copy of the Ralph Krum appraisal of the station and read it for yourself. It was done with your tax dollars for the City. Heck it might be public record. Is he using relevant market comparables for the value? Does he make adequate adjustments for size, condition and location? Does his matrix of value analysis of evaluating re-construction cost, income potential, and comparable arms length market sales make any sense whatsoever?
This isn't rocket science, it's common sense. There are tons of properties that have been sitting downtown for ages for lease and for sale. Downtown is not an especially valuable location for the majority of retail and commercial users that want high traffic counts and ease of access. In addition the CBD downtown zoning is not as flexible as the general commerical zoning on the primary traffic corridors.
If you doubt this pay for a professional, MAI certified commercial appraisal and settle the matter.
Call the appraiser who appraised the parking lot of the old mall. $400,000.00 for an acre of a parking lot. That propety would probally be worth 1 or 2 million?
It is certainly worth more than a 100 that is a give away price and we all know it. And to make it worse it will be a non-profit so no taxes to be collected..We the tax payer lost all the way around.
I would be interested in knowing when this property was put out for bid???
You offered 250k cash and city will only give it away to a non profit tax exemt at 100k
hmmm?
sounds like SBY alright...
It doesn't require a professional to come in and appraise a building being given away for $100,000.00, unless you're that stupid.
I have provided at least three examples in this Post alone of how it is clearly worth $250,000.00 or more.
IF they sell it for $100,000.00 it will drive the comps way down and hurt every downtown property owner. I will play a part in increased taxes for ALL City residents.
To answer Jonathan Taylor's question I refused to publish, there was NO legislation OR RFP in the beginning. The Mayor and Council were trying to GIVE it away for $100,000.00 right out of the gate to a group that wanted to purchase it for a kids theater. Once I learned of their $100,000.00 scam, that's when I offered $250,000.00 cash. It shut down that deal immediately and the City Council and Mayor created new legislation allowing them to sell it even to the lowest bidder and qualify towards what the Council and Mayor wanted there instead. THAT'S what made it easy to disqualify my $250,000.00 offer.
Then Comegys stated publicly that he refused to sell Joe Albero the building, period.
Remember the Horse Patrol, they did the same thing with the Horses. Joe Albero could NOT buy them, once they changed that legislation too. Then there was the $5,000.00 offer I made on one of the Fire Trucks with a blown motor. The ultimately sold it for $2,500.00 to a Dealer instead. Let's not forget my cash offers/donations to the Salisbury Zoo, unconditional. Checks were sent in and new legislation was then created, "Not A Friend Of The Salisbury Zoo." They refused to cash my checks and sent them back AFTER they created that new legislation. Then there was the offer for the bronze statue of the Otter, they refused that too. One last thing that comes to mind is my offer to pay for the entire digital recording system for Brenda Colegrove.
There were other offers I made as well but this should shut your mouth up for a while JT.
It doesn't require a professional to come in and appraise a building being given away for $100,000.00, unless you're that stupid.
I have provided at least three examples in this Post alone of how it is clearly worth $250,000.00 or more.
IF they sell it for $100,000.00 it will drive the comps way down and hurt every downtown property owner. I will play a part in increased taxes for ALL City residents.
To answer Jonathan Taylor's question I refused to publish, there was NO legislation OR RFP in the beginning. The Mayor and Council were trying to GIVE it away for $100,000.00 right out of the gate to a group that wanted to purchase it for a kids theater. Once I learned of their $100,000.00 scam, that's when I offered $250,000.00 cash. It shut down that deal immediately and the City Council and Mayor created new legislation allowing them to sell it even to the lowest bidder and qualify towards what the Council and Mayor wanted there instead. THAT'S what made it easy to disqualify my $250,000.00 offer.
Then Comegys stated publicly that he refused to sell Joe Albero the building, period.
Remember the Horse Patrol, they did the same thing with the Horses. Joe Albero could NOT buy them, once they changed that legislation too. Then there was the $5,000.00 offer I made on one of the Fire Trucks with a blown motor. The ultimately sold it for $2,500.00 to a Dealer instead. Let's not forget my cash offers/donations to the Salisbury Zoo, unconditional. Checks were sent in and new legislation was then created, "Not A Friend Of The Salisbury Zoo." They refused to cash my checks and sent them back AFTER they created that new legislation. Then there was the offer for the bronze statue of the Otter, they refused that too. One last thing that comes to mind is my offer to pay for the entire digital recording system for Brenda Colegrove.
There were other offers I made as well but this should shut your mouth up for a while JT.
Off Topic ?
whats up with Jimmy's ?
heard they're done ?
I was present when you made your offer to the council during the meeting. The stupidity of the council division has bothered me but I have realized common sense is only in the eye of someone else not certain council members. If it goes non profit do not make it compete with the down town business, namely I think the UMES proposition is useless. I agree with expanding the use to the libraet if it has to be non profit parts of the DEA located in the library are useless and the space they take up would be better used I don't always agree with you Mr Albero but I think you are once again 100% on this
Most of the experienced commercial real estate people in the area peg the building in the mid to low $200,000 range if purchased at auction. Honestly I don't really think this real world value range for the facility as it sits today is even a debate at this point for those knowledgeable about local real estate values.
If you really, truly, honestly think this property, which is effectively an old brick shell to be gutted, is worth hundreds of thousands more to an arm's length buyer at auction then you need to show why, and how, and based on what appraisal logic.
The City Council has said that the building is extremely dear to them historically, and they will only allow it to be developed in specific ways and under certain conditions. The process to make submissions that met their criteria was open to everyone and very few choose to belly up to these requirements. Under these restrictive conditions most investors would refuse to do as the council wanted even if the building was deeded to them free of charge.
If your claim is that the City Council is kissing off $500,000 to $800,000 worth of income you need to provide some rationale other than arm waving that a real world buyer would pay anything close to that for the firehouse.
The truth is that the Council has decided that strictly controlling the use of a property owned by the city is what they want to do. People seem to forget they are not compelled to sell this thing. They could rehab it themselves to office space (likely at a ferocious price) and put administrative workers in there if they chose. That they are offering it only to people willing to do what they want re "community betterment" vs offering it for open auction and making (prospectively) around 100K-150K more is the real world decision point here, not some operatic real estate drama full of intrigue.
I know that's disappointing to you.
Let the voters of Salisbury decide. We have said time and time again, we want the city to keep it with the city. History alone it is worth it to us. Don't buy the fire boat and put the money for its maintanence into the rehab of the fire station. We the people have a choice!!! Is this on the agenda for Monday's council meeting? Please let us know... Show up in force if it is and be heard...
What your not hearing is it was promised to Gillis probably an under the table deal as a bonus so profits can be distributed to some dirty politicians.
I though this building was unsafe. Thats why the fire dept left.
anonymous 5:54, let's just say the building was in fact unsafe. It was only unsafe for loading one floor with Fire Trucks, not people. Also, IF it was unsafe, they would have been out of there many years ago. There's nothing unsafe about the building. They may have used that as an excuse, one of many. That building was made to last and they don't build them like that today. It would cost way too much money to do so. Again, my offer stated "no contingencies."
These days only a very foolish person buys a property of any kind with "no contigencies". Structural issues aside environmental problems can eat you a new rear end.
Over the years that property has seen more oil, gas, detergent and God knows what chemicals washed off of vehicles than 10 car washes. You want to bet what a Phase 3 environmental survey will turn up on the soil portion of that property from the parking lot runoff? You want to estimate how much of your net worth it will cost to remediate that soil if there are problems?
10:53 AM, 2:34 PM, 9:40 PM
Hmmm, let me guess! The same individual(Brad Gillis)or the same family with an invested interest in this "Stimulus Package.)If Brad and Palmer don't get that free hand out someone else will. Sounds like the Fireboat Fraudulent Fiasco!!
Nothing like sugarcoating their thievery. This is corruption at it's best and I will always see Brad Gillis, Palmer Gillis, Jim Liarton, Louweasel Smith and Bubba Comegees as corrupt people stealing from the tax payers.
anon 9:40
Not to mention that thee have been no less than 3 fuel storage tanks on that property at one time or another and that just the ones I can recall in the last 40 years.
Gas,oil and detergent is only the beginning. How about all the dirt soot, chemicals and even hazardous material brought in on the fireman's clothing and on the truck some which may still be lurking in the nooks and crannies.
So the appraiser was paid off too ! All the business men involved here have questionable reputations . Don't let them steal you blind Salisbury!
10:09 AM is anon 9:40, as well as 10:53 AM, 2:34 PM!!! LMAO how they are using this blog to make it sound like they are doing the tax payers a favor!!
NOOK AND CRANNIES! The only nooks and crannies are ours the tax payers, the ones you are trying to stick the shaft in!
Re 11:05 AM I'm no fan of Palmer Gillis as I have been a sub contactor for him in the past, and we have gone toe to toe over a variety of things in his medical buildouts, but I'm even less of a buddy of the raw stupidity in some of these accusatory posts.
People seem to want to be willfully ignorant of the realities of real estate. Per the "favor" comment he actually probably does consider it a fairly high risk money sink and a public service.
A plan to spend huge sums to gut and convert an old brick building into a large banquet and multi-use facility DOWNTOWN is, IMO, a highly questionable idea financially, and one he may well come to regret.
Unless there is a huge municipal push to hold meetings there, there are much better, and far more convenient facilites like The Fountains to hold large meetings. Given the options of where he could put his real estate development money this is a risky crap shoot.
Having said this, the process was fairly straightforward. The city council set limits and conditions on what could be done, and he, and only a very few others stepped up.
Re the $100,000 purchase price this is understandable. If you're jumping off a pier in a straightjacket and handcuffs there had better be some incentive to proceed with the development.
I am interested in something though, since we seem to have so many real estate development and financing experts on this blog who are convinced there are HUGE sums being stolen here. Riddle me this
Say he does pick it up for
$ 100,000, what do you estimate his TOTAL real world finished "all in" dollar per square foot invested cost in the project will be once he has finished gutting and converting the building? What do you think it costs to deliver institutional quality buildings these days?
Go ahead, bloggers impress with your real estate acumen. Get out your pencils and "do the math" for me.
I'm waiting.
Anonymous 12:47, that's easy. let's look t Station 7 in Pitsville. They invested close to $1,000,000.00 total into that buiding. IF Palmer or anyone else wants a FREE ride off the taxpayers, go somewhere else. I offered $250,000.00 CASH for that buildiing it would cost me another $600,000.00 to finish it for what I intended it to be.
NOW, why would annyone else MAKE an offer after Comegys stated he wouldn't sell it to me? Everyone knew at that point, IF you were NOT a frend of the good old boys, you're NOT getting it.
Are YOU getting my drift now? It's a SCAM.
12:47 is that you Palmer?
2:52 let me assure you Palmer would not post on this board if his life depended on it. He absolutely loathes the culture of back biting and gossip that pervades small town politics. Call it pride, arrogance, or common sense, it's the main reason he has decided not to get involved in Salisbury electoral politics as a candidate anymore.
I'm not so particular.
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