Norfolk begins selling off vacant city lots through online auction
NORFOLK — Vacant lots scattered across the city are finally being sold off to homebuilders and residents more than a decade after many were seized due to unpaid taxes.
The City Council approved the sale of the first eight city-owned vacant lots through the newly created Vacant Property Online Auction at Tuesday’s meeting. And more are coming. Between 10 and 20 lots will be auctioned quarterly.
“This has been in the making for two years in terms of getting this auction process up and going. And I think it’s a wonderful opportunity for our residents,” Councilwoman Courtney Doyle said. “It’s been very well done. It’s our first time out of the chute. We will have many more coming our way.”
There were 13 properties listed in the inaugural auction. Several lots received no bids.
Of the eight lots sold, six went to businesses, including construction companies, and two were sold to individuals.
All lots went to the highest bidder, but that may not always be the case.
City officials created the auction with rules that gives the city council the power to reject a high bid if it does not comply with the city’s affordable housing goals. A city spokesman said in May those rules could prevent “one person or large entities from buying all of the property.”
The city owns 1,014 vacant lots, of which 680 are zoned for residential uses, according to officials.
The auction is aimed at rebuilding neighborhoods with many vacant lots, creating more affordable housing options and increasing the participation of small, women-owned and minority-owned businesses in home construction.