Commissioner questions airport land deal

County commissioner Pinki Jackel is questioning a recent land sale at the Apalachicola airport which could open the way for the county to purchase the property. At issue is 21 acres of undeveloped land at the end of the airport’s main runway which the Airport Advisory Committee would like the county to purchase to serve as a runway buffer zone. The board has found itself in a stalemate over the land purchase for months – there are two commissioners in favor of the purchase, and two have voted against it arguing that the sale price of 9000 dollars an acre is too high. Commission chairman, Smokey Parrish, has been unable to vote on the issue because his employer was one of the landowners – though last month it was made public that Parrish’s employer has sold his stake in the property and the chairman may no longer face a conflict of interest in the matter. On Tuesday, however, Pinki Jackel began asking about some of the specifics of the deal including whether any money has actually changed hands and whether there is a reverter clause to the deal that would let the buyer off the hook if the county does not buy the property. Jackel said the land deal does not pass her muster test and she wants the issue investigated further. She said the information should be passed on to the state ethics commission as they decide whether Commissioner Parrish is free to vote on the land purchase.