The City of Yuma has retaken the lead in selling and developing the property between Detroit Ave. (Highway 59) and Indian Hills Golf Course.
The city purchased the 71.06 acres of farm land about 10 years ago for $738,910. It has been leased out for farming in most of the years since.
A developer eventually came on board attempting to market multiple residential lots as “Yuma Junction.”
However, nothing has come to pass in that regard. The developer is not involved anymore.
The city has put up a new sign along Detroit Ave. stating “Build Your Future in Yuma” and “Land Available for Development.” It includes Yuma City Hall and its phone number.
City Manager Eric Duthie said he has received some phone calls since the new sign went up a few weeks ago. The callers were interested in buying a single lot.
However, Duthie said the idea is to create a partnership to develop all of the acreage.
“It would be nice to try to do it with local ag companies,” he said, noting other towns have made deals with companies for housing.
Developing the 71 acres is part of the comprehensive plan update the city is doing this year.
The land purchase by the city has received broad criticism through the years. However, Duthie, who was not with the city at the time, noted that certificates of deposit were not yielding much interest income at that time, and in the long run the city will get a better return on its investment.
Available housing remains a key issue in Yuma, like it is all over, so development would be welcome. Duthie pointed out that there also are more than 50 lots in Yuma that are essentially not being utilized.