The city of Luverne and Gary Golla are swapping land near the former Sharkee’s lot to clean up property lines and make the area more marketable.
At their Jan. 14 meeting, council members adopted an ordinance authorizing the conveyance of real estate from the city to Golla, also known as G-Three Enterprises.
It involves a parcel, locally known as the former CHS property, in the Farm Store area and also a small sliver of adjacent land that was once a railroad easement.
That piece is being conveyed to Golla in exchange for two other properties Golla owns on the north edge of the former Sharkee’s and Mert’s lot.
With the trade, both the city and Golla will have easier access to their properties and will be better served for future development, according to City Administrator John Call.
“The city owns the property that is on the south side of this block, and the property trade gives a logical east-west property line that is squared off,” Call said.
As part of the deal, City Attorney Ben Vander Kooi also “cleaned up” former railroad property easements.
“Let’s just say this has been a long time coming,” Vander Kooi said. “It’s taken three years to get old railroad easements to get vacated and cleared up on the property. … It’s going to make it much more marketable.”
Council member Caroline Thorson indicated the process has been good for everyone involved.
“It will just open it up and square it all off, and everyone comes out better,” she said. “It does clean it up quite a bit. It makes those lines a little neater.”
The city already owns the parcel between the two Golla lots, having bought it from Gary Hassebroek, who has until August to remove the old structures that are still there.
Project still on track for development
Late in December, the city finished utility improvements on the former Sharkee’s lot to prepare it for development.
The property became eligible for Opportunity Zone incentives through the federal Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017, and paperwork stalled shortly after when the government shut down.
Now Luverne developer Don Jahnke is working with investors and their lenders to finalize financing to qualify for federal Opportunity Zone incentives.
The overall plan is to transform the entire six-acre area over the next five years into a commercial and housing neighborhood known as the Towne Square Addition.
Property will be sold off as it is developed into housing and commercial property in the mixed-use development.
Because of the more immediate need for housing, Jahnke and investors will first build a 27-unit, one- and two-bedroom apartment building at Highway 75 and Hatting Street.