By Jim Newell

Review Editor

The Orion Township Board of Trustees voted to sell property it owns in Oakland Township and lower the asking price for its Atwater Street property during the board meeting Sept. 5.

The board received an offer of $415,000 for 4.08 acres at 2510 Orion Road in Oakland Township. Orion Township had owned more than 14 acres in Oakland Township, but under a land swap deal with the state’s DNR, traded most of that the property for 76 acres just north of Greenshield Road in Orion Township.

The remaining land – the 4.08 acres – included a house, so the township is selling it as a homestead.

The potential buyer previously made offers of $375,000 and $384,900. Orion Township’s realtor, Kathleen Sanchez, presented the board with the new offer, and said the person interested in the property was “a very qualified buyer.”

The property had been listed in the $425,000 – $430,000 range, but the board felt the current offer “is the best offer we’re going to get” and voted unanimously to accept the offer.

The township will close on the sale 45 days after the offer is accepted by both parties.

The board also voted to lower the asking price of its Atwater Street property with a 4-2 vote. Trustee John Steimel and Treasurer Donni Steele voted against the proposal.

Sanchez said the property had been listed at $189,900 since January. A potential buyer had offered $155,000 but the deal fell through after the buyer asked to be released from the purchase agreement.

Sanchez requested that the board reduce the asking price to $159,900.

In June 2013, Orion Twp. purchased three parcels on Atwater Street with the intention of building a new fire station on the site.

The township now plans to renovate fire station number one on Anderson Street, instead of closing that station and building a new one on Atwater.

Sanchez said two parcels are zoned for single-family use but the third parcel doesn’t have enough frontage to be sold for single-family use.

Sanchez, an associate broker with Real Estate One, recommended the township sell the property as one unit and not try to break it up into parcels and sell it off piecemeal.

“It’s a nice piece of property, but the size is the major limitation for people looking at it for mixed-use,” she said. “So, it made sense to do it as a package.”

The township purchased the property for about $205,000, but then had additional costs to demolish the three homes on the land, permit fees, sewer and water fees.

“We’re not going to break even, we’re going to lose money,” Barnett said, adding that the township will save about a million dollars by renovating the Anderson Street fire station instead of building a new station at the Atwater property.

The board also unanimously passed the first reading of the Orion Commons Major Planned Unit Development. The board plans to hold a second reading and public hearing at its Oct. 2 meeting.

The PUD is for two commercial retail outlets on Lapeer Road, south of Scripps Road and north of Gunnelson Road.