State Trust Land across from Lake Havasu State Park appraised $2.47M set for auction

A 12-acre parcel of vacant land along London Bridge Road will be on the market in February.

The Arizona State Land Department has published an auction notice for its triangle shaped 12-acre property directly across the street from the Lake Havasu State Park entrance. The property runs from the southeast corner of Industrial Boulevard and London Bridge Road, extending south to the Ultra Custom Boats property line. The auction is scheduled to take place on Feb. 12 on the front steps of the Mohave County Courthouse with the bidding starting at the appraised value of $2,470,000.

Jim Perry, Deputy Commissioner of the Arizona State Land Department, said it is fairly common for State Trust Land to be put up for sale. He estimated the department sold about $200 million worth of land last year. All profits from those sales, as well as profits from use of State Trust Lands, go to support the department’s beneficiaries, which is primarily education.

Perry said the State Land Department decided to sell this particular parcel after Lakeland Enterprises, also known as Lakeland Marine, approached them about purchasing the land.

Although Lakeland Enterprises got the process started, Perry said all State Trust Land that is sold goes to auction. In order to bid at the auction a cashier’s check for the required payment at the point of sale ($321,300 for the buyer, or $345,475 for a representative of the buyer) and any business who bids must be licensed to do business in the State of Arizona.

“If someone else is interested in the property we would love to have them look at due diligence materials and come to the auction if they are interested,” Perry said.

Mayor Cal Sheehy said Lake Havasu City is not considering purchasing the property, but he said he welcomes the potential for further development.

“Any time that we have vacant land that transition into improved parcels it gives our residents opportunities for access to services or retail uses that seem to be beneficial,” Sheehy said. “It is helpful for our citizens to have improved choice. We support and encourage anyone who is willing to invest in Lake Havasu City. Whatever is there will follow the intent of the general plan and the zoning regulations.”

A private buyer of the land would also expand the city’s tax rolls because the Arizona State Land Department is exempt from property taxes.

Lake Havasu State Park is also unlikely to pursue purchasing the property across the street, according to Park Manager Daniel Roddy. Roddy said any addition to State Park land has to go through the park’s offices in Phoenix and ultimately be approved by the Legislature. He also said he is unsure if state parks are even allowed to participate in an auction.

“I don’t know how much we will be involved, but I do want to make sure that our folks in Phoenix are aware of it,” Roddy said. “They may already be. We look out at that and it is a great location. We think it is something that has a lot of economic development potential.”

The parcel of land up for auction is currently zoned in an Agriculture/Preservation District that would allow for uses such as a cemetery, day care or a park along with agricultural uses such as community gardens, a plant nursery, or a medical marijuana cultivation facility.

That zoning is subject to change, however.

“I would assume that whoever the successful bidder is would ask for a rezoning based on what their use would be,” Sheehy said. “That zoning doesn’t really make a whole lot of sense for private ownership, but you never know what somebody’s intention might be.”

A rezoning effort seems to make sense in the area.

The parcel is within an area identified as “Resort Related” in the city’s general plan and it is currently the only property within that designation zoned as A/P. The property is surrounded by Commercial-2 District, which allows for a much wider range of permitted business uses.

City Planner Luke Morris said C-1 and C-2 zoning are the most common for resort related areas within the city, but the owner of a property can request a change to whatever type of zoning they want. All zoning changes go before the Planning and Zoning Commission, which submits a recommendation to the City Council which holds a public hearing before ultimately voting to approve or deny the request.