Fayetteville board weighs donated downtown lots as cleanup, asbestos and cost questions persist

The Fayetteville Board of Mayor and Aldermen spent much of its May 7 work session addressing whether the city should accept offers of donated, fire-damaged downtown lots and how to handle cleanup and asbestos remediation.

Property owner Britney Hulcom told the board she and two other owners had initially planned to split cleanup costs by square footage but said some owners are now considering donating lots to the city. She said an asbestos plan has "confirmed there is asbestos in the pile and some portions of the pile are 16 ft deep," and asked whether the city would require a cleanup plan before accepting any donation and whether transferring title would forfeit insurance proceeds for the lot. She told the board an estimate for one lot was "140,000ish."

Kyle Ragdale, another downtown stakeholder, asked the board to be transparent about liability and protection for owners who remain on the tax rolls, saying, "Downtown matters to us all, but fairness matters, too." Director Jack Williams said staff have scheduled a meeting with the property owners and expect Randall Harrison with TDC—described in the meeting as an asbestos specialist—to attend and provide guidance on required remediation steps.

City administration framed the next steps as fact-finding rather than a decision. Kevin Owens said staff and the board want to ensure cleanup follows state environmental guidance and that "staff is working every available time that we can on this." Several board members signaled openness to pursuing conversations about taking property if it is cleaned to acceptable standards and if future use would return the parcels to taxable, retail or service uses rather than permanent green space.

The board did not vote to accept any lots. Instead members directed staff to continue planning: a meeting with property owners is scheduled for May 14, and the board agreed to move a proposal to establish an ad hoc committee—charged with coordinating cleanup, legal review and redevelopment discussions—to the regular Tuesday meeting for consideration.

Why it matters: the downtown parcels are central to Fayetteville’s commercial district; decisions about cleanup, who pays and future land use will affect public safety, tax revenue and how quickly sidewalks and business-facing streets can reopen.

Next steps: staff will present an ad hoc committee plan and related procedural steps to the board at the regular meeting on Tuesday; the city has not accepted title to any property and said cleanup requirements must be established before any transfer.