(A) General provision. Unless contrary to an agreement to purchase a blighted property with a seller, or, if applicable, a rule, policy, procedure or term of participation promulgated by a governmental entity, or an intergovernmental agreement, the city may assign its rights to purchase a blighted property (“assign” or “assignment”) to an eligible employee.
(B) Assignment subject to other agreements. An assignment is subject to all the rules, policies and procedures and terms for participation promulgated by a seller, or, if applicable, a governmental entity, or an intergovernmental agreement.
(C) Assignment procedures. After entering into an agreement to acquire a blighted property, but prior to taking fee simple title, the city may make an assignment to an eligible employee as follows:
(1) The city may notify eligible employees that the city has entered into an agreement to acquire a blighted property and is able to offer an assignment to eligible employees (“notice”). Any notice to eligible employees shall be sent to eligible employees with their wage payment, and posted in the City Clerk’s office;
(2) The city may set a time and date when eligible employees may inspect a blighted property;
(3) The City Planner shall set a time, place and date by which all eligible employees must notify the city of their interest in purchasing the blighted property (“cut-off date”). The cut-off date shall be at least 14 days after the notice is posted in the City Clerk’s office;
(4) Prior to the cut-off date, an eligible employee interested in purchasing a blighted property must submit to the City Planner the following documents:
(a) A signed “notice of interest” form, available from the City Planner’s office; and
(b) A mortgage pre-qualification letter (“pre-qualification letter”) from a financial institution for a mortgage in an amount sufficient to cover the purchase, closing and rehabilitation costs associated with a blighted property.
(5) When more than one eligible employee submits the required documentation by the cut-off date, the City Planner shall prepare for, and conduct, a lottery to select a winner for each blighted property;
(6) A separate lottery for each blighted property shall be held at a regularly scheduled meeting of the City Council or Committee of the Whole. The name of each eligible employee who submitted the required documentation by the cut-off date shall be placed into a receptacle in such a way that the name is concealed from view. The Police or Fire Captain, or other qualified non-interested person, shall draw the names from the receptacle. The first name drawn from the receptacle shall be declared the winner of the assignment (“assignee”). All the remaining names entered into the lottery shall be drawn and identified as the first runner-up, second runner-up, and so on until all the names placed in the receptacle have been drawn;
(7) If the assignee does not purchase the blighted property, the first runner-up is then eligible for the assignment, and so on until all names are exhausted;
(8) If no eligible employee submits the required documentation by the cut-off date, or if the assignee and all runners-up in the lottery do not purchase the blighted property, at the direction of the Mayor, the city may:
(a) Send a second notice to eligible employees with a new cut-off date;
(b) Rehabilitate the blighted property; or
(c) Rescind the agreement to acquire the blighted property.
(9) Within seven days after the lottery, the assignee must retain the services of an attorney and execute the documentation required to complete the assignment. The assignment documents include the following:
(a) An assignment agreement between the city and the assignee;
(b) A purchase agreement for the blighted property between the seller and the assignee with the addendum as required by the seller;
(c) A restrictive covenant, or other document, whereby the assignee agrees to abide by the rules, policies, procedures and terms for participation in this Program as have been promulgated by the city, and, where applicable, the seller, a governmental entity or an intergovernmental agreement; and
(d) Other documentation required by the city, and, if applicable, the seller, a governmental entity or an intergovernmental agreement.
(D) Administrative fee. The assignee shall pay to the city at closing an administrative fee, calculated to offset administrative, overhead and other costs incurred by the city in implementing and administering this Program.
(Ord. 98-03, passed 1-27-1998)