Ocoee considers selling land to lead to new development

OCOEE, Fla. — A developer is offering Ocoee $1.1 million to purchase property the city bought more than a decade ago.

Meritage Homes offered to buy nine out of 12 acres of city land off of off A D Mims and Clarke roads. The $1.1 million is almost exactly what the land was appraised for.

The developer said it wanted to build 64 homes.

The Ocoee City Council gave city staff the thumbs-up to enter negotiations.

In 2006, the city bought the land for $3.5 million. Now, it still owes $2.6 million.

The sale, if it goes through, would not cover all of that debt. But the mayor said it is still something to consider because more homes would increase the city’s tax base.

Plus, he said, the city would get more in impact fees. He also thinks the debt could be taken care of if the commercial land is sold.

Commissioner George Oliver said he worries about traffic in the area.

But nearby resident Alex Aldridge said he doesn’t think traffic will be a problem.

"I'm totally OK with it," he said.

The city said before anything is built, a developer would have to do a traffic study and potentially chip in cash if the road needs to be expanded.

Ocoee did get an offer for the land back in April, but that deal didn't go through.

Cox Media Group