Under the agreement approved tonight, the county will accept liability on the fair market cost of the property and transfer to the city 7 acres of land there where the police club is located, including access to the facility, which also contains a firing range.
The agreement also calls for the county to pay the city $50,000 for part of the transaction.
“The move is a good one,” City Manager Paul Sabiston said, opening the property so a high tech company can locate there, a company he said promises jobs for the area “if we wrap this up in the next few days.”
The city controls 41 acres of the airport, which has been closed more than a year.
Because the city and county have acreage at the old airport — the county has 200 acres — both governments must pay the Federal Aviation Administration fair market value. The funds from this procedure go to the new airport.
Halifax County has paid its fair market value — $1.5 million — and the city must do the same, the city’s figure being between $200,000 to $250,000. The city’s figure could be lower, Sabiston has said.
“We’re just expediting the process,” County Manager Tony Brown said following the meeting. Brown said negotiations with the city went smoothly on the matter. “Working together works. There was a lot of open communication.”
Said Sabiston: “It was just a good result. They knew they were entering into a deal which is good for the county wanting to have new jobs.”
There has been no date set on when an announcement will be made as officials continue work on the details of the project, Halifax County Economic Development Director Cathy Scott said.
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