Politics & Government

No Buyers Yet for Historic Allen Break Estate

The Allen Way home sits empty on city owned property.

Nearly a year after placing the city’s historic Allen Break Estate property on the market, the home has yet to find a new owner.

“We have received a couple of offers on it,” said Konrad Bolowich, Director of Information Systems for Loma Linda. “And I think there will be some discussion in closed session this council meeting on it. Not necessarily on accepting those offers, but what to do in relation to them.”

The home once sat on property owned by Allen Break Sr., who owned much of the land in the area at the turn of the century. At the time, the home was surrounded by citrus groves.

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The property is now owned by the city and sits next to Hulda Crooks Park on Allen Way. It was part of a 60-acre parcel of land purchased for $260,000 by the city in 1995. At the time, the home was dilapidated, according to city reports.

City officials have long intended to sell the home. But the council officially voted to put it on the market in January despite a struggling housing market.

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Councilmembers said in January they wanted to sell the house above market value if possible. Since then, Bolowich said several offers have come and gone.

The decision before the council is whether or not they want to consider the current offers. No one has yet come close to an agreement on price, city officials said.

The city made repairs needed to the home and had researched the possibility of renting the home. But to get it to the proper condition for a rental, the renovations could cost upwards of $46,348. And it would cost $9,563 annually to maintain it, city officials said.

All but two and a half acres of the original 60-acre lot have been used by the city. The rest was used to expand Crooks Park and as a location for water reservoirs.


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