Getting It Under Control: Acquiring Property for Redevelopment (Part 1)

<p>Local governments in North Carolina that seek to shape or spur downtown development must often gain site control of properties that have strong redevelopment potential. Frequently, a site with strong potential is privately owned, and a savvy local government will first need to obtain site control before proceeding with resource-intensive and site-specific pre-development activities (a process further illustrated in this previous post). Site control does not necessarily mean the local government must purchase the property. A local government might have the option to secure site control without purchasing the property outright, through negotiating an extended due diligence period. This is the first of two blog posts that will discuss Purchase and Sale Agreements and provide two examples of how a North Carolina community acquired site control through a Purchase Agreement to spur a transformative community economic development project in its downtown.</p> <p>In North Carolina, a range of statutory authority is granted to local governments to acquire property, each with very specific considerations and permissions. For further discussion of the authorities through which acquisition transactions are made possible, including those that allow for community and economic development, see David Lawrence’s  Local Government Property Transactions in North Carolina as well as Tyler Mulligan’s related blog post on property acquisition procedures for local governments. Additionally, entering into a purchase agreement likely triggers all of the procedural requirements for acquisition, so the local government attorney should be involved. See Tyler Mulligan’s blog post, Follow Procedures Prior to Acquiring Property for Redevelopment.</p> <p>A Purchase and Sale Agreement is a legal document that [...]</p>