Developer offers to buy Spotswood Drive lot, proposes 12-unit condominium project

Peter Sills told council he has studied a little-over-two-acre city-owned parcel on Spotswood Drive near the hospital and proposed a responsible, low-rise condominium development totaling 12 units and roughly $5,000,000 in project value. He said the scheme consists of two larger buildings and two smaller structures (twelve units in total) and that he would be willing to pay the tax-appraised value for the property — “somewhere around a $120,000” — subject to receiving appropriate approvals.

Sills described unit mix, sizing and pricing: smaller units around 1,500 square feet, larger units about 2,000 square feet; he said smaller units could sell for roughly $320,000 and larger units around $420,000, and that each unit would include double-car garages. He emphasized design choices tied to topography and solar orientation and said the project was intended to be market-rate (he did not propose restrictions that would legally limit buyer occupation to retirees).

Council members questioned how the design would respond to the site’s slope, where parking would be located, whether any study period was included in the proposal, and how Sills arrived at the 12-unit total. Sills described design choices (south-facing units for light, garages for each unit) and said he intended to begin construction as soon as the coming fall, acknowledging the schedule was optimistic. The mayor asked city staff to follow up with Sills on next steps.

Why it matters: the parcel is city-owned, adjacent to hospital property and downtown, and a public sale or redevelopment would alter local housing inventory, property tax base and neighborhood character. Council did not take an approval action at the meeting and directed staff to follow up.

Quote: “I would be happy to pay the tax-appraised value of the property for the property, which is somewhere around a $120,000,” Peter Sills said.