Paul Evans

JASPER, Tenn. - The Jasper Board of Mayor and Aldermen has decided to sell off a portion of city-owned property after a request from a nearby landowner.

Mayor Paul Evans said the property is on Anderson Ridge where a water tank was built and used by the city a long time ago.

"The water tank has been abandoned for years," he said. "The first step is to declare it surplus property."

The board voted unanimously to do so last week.

A Jasper water department official said the tank is very old and was used when there was only about 80 pounds per square inch of pressure in the system.

Now, there is far more than that.

If another water tank were needed, it would have to be built on a higher location along the ridge than the current one anyway, officials said.

"The tank site will not be used again," Evans said. "I don't see a need in us holding on to it."

A nearby property owner offered to buy the land recently, he said, and that person has already submitted a bid on the property.

Now that the land has been declared surplus, City Attorney Mark Raines said the sale will be advertised in local newspapers.

"We need to do an advertisement to do that," he said. "We just need sufficient time so we can get it published in the newspaper. That will give [other] people an opportunity to respond."

The city sold off a similar property several years ago in Haletown, Tenn., Evans said.

Bids for the property must be submitted before the board's next regular meeting Aug. 11, officials said, and they will be opened at that time.

Ryan Lewis is based in Marion County. Contact him at ryan lewis34@gmail.com.