MORGANTOWN — The conveyance of 19 parcels of city-owned property to the Morgantown Land Reuse & Preservation Agency received unanimous first reading approval from Morgantown City Council on Tuesday.
The properties are spread across the city and represent a total of just 1.8 acres, almost exclusively in residential areas. One .03 acre parcel is located in service business (B-2) district.
The properties are what LRPA member David Satterfield previously described as largely unbuildable “odd lots.” Some are narrow strips of land sandwiched between larger parcels or on the boundaries of neighborhoods. Others are triangular spits of land created by non-perpendicular street intersections.
“Every department looked at all the parcels that the city had, and looked at the ones we didn’t want or didn’t have a use for, then we forwarded them on to MUB to make sure that they didn’t have a use or a utility that ran through these properties,” Interim City Manager Damien Davis said.
Discussion of land conveyance between the city and LRPA stretches back more than a year as the agency sees the property as a chance to potentially generate some income for its mission while getting land back on the tax rolls.
Nine of the parcels have been identified as likely candidates for sideyard extensions, meaning the LRPA will approach neighboring property owners about purchasing the land. The agency has marked others for potential greenspace, trial connection or infill development uses.
The LRPA was created by the city in 2018 to pursue the acquisition, management, and disposition of property that’s suitable for conservation, water quality protection, public space, affordable housing, and commercial uses.
In its first real opportunity to stretch its legs, the agency was provided $600,000 in American Rescue Plan Act money by the city with marching orders to focus on a blighted area of lower Greenmont – specifically, Pennsylvania Avenue.
While the agency has made significant progress in that effort, LRPA Chair Jessica McDonald said it’s likely going to take additional funding, which the agency is seeking out from multiple sources, including the city.
“Generally speaking, once we accomplish this project, we will have accumulated 24 parcels and a total of 2.4 acres, for just a little bit over a million dollars,” McDonald said.
The current vision is to clear the Pennsylvania Avenue structures between the connection with Brockway Avenue and Deckers Creek Avenue, creating a shelf of creekside green space. The remaining land would be marketed for the development of affordable housing.
“It’s got such potential. You’re looking out at all that green space. You’re really close to the Deckers Creek Trail, and you’ve got great access to downtown and all of the thriving businesses that already exist in South Park and Greenmont,” McDonald said. “We don’t know what the housing development is going to look like yet. We have some ideas about how we would like to see it. We would like to see something sustainable, something attractive, something that’s truly a nice place to live.”
Beyond Pennsylvania Avenue, McDonald said the agency is exploring ways to bring in enough revenue to stay active.
It’s looking to the city to potentially assist with that.
McDonald explained some of the initiatives undertaken by land reuse agencies in the cities of Charleston and Nitro.
“What we really took away from our talks with Nitro and Charleston is that land reuse agencies work best in tight cooperation with city management, and really that’s the only way that they are going to be successful,” she said. “They were very clear with us. They are not self-sustaining. They are not money makers, but they are a tool for cities to use to accomplish goals.”
