By AMBER DILLEY
GLASGOW — Barren County will not be purchasing the property on South Lewis Street after an appraisal determined the land was worth less than the contracted price.
A contract on the South Lewis Street property was initially signed by Barren County Judge-Executive Davie Greer with the intention that the new Barren County Correction Center would be built there. It has been appraised pursuant to Kentucky Revised Statute 99.675, which states any property purchased by a government entity must be appraised before purchase.
“An appraisal has been done on the old stock market property that we considered buying for the jail,” Greer said during the fiscal court meeting Tuesday evening. “The property did not appraise for the amount set forth in the contract.”
Because of this, the court voted that since it could not agree with the seller on the purchase price, it would exercise its option in the appraisal contingency clause of the contract to deem the contract null and void.
Magistrate Charles Allen said he wanted to know if the price of the appraisal should be listed in the motion, but Greer said she didn’t think that would be a good idea and the appraisal price was public record if anyone wished to see it.
The vote carried 7-1, with Allen abstaining from voting.
The property appraised for $40,000, according to the Barren County Public Valuation Administration.
The county was going to purchase the property on South Lewis Street before outcry from residents of the Liberty District and the KRS put a stop to those plans.
The county is currently getting a property appraised located at the edge of Industrial Park on Prestwick drive that is about 50 acres in size, Greer said.
