Alpharetta bought 6.6 acres on residential-zoned Mid-Broadwell Road, two miles west of Downtown, for $250,000 in 1994. The city had planned to build a fire station or a public park. But poor access from nearby winding roads made both projects impractical, city planners tell GlobeSt.com.

Now the city plans to hold a public auction later this year to sell off the surplus land it purchased 10 years ago for $37,879 per acre, or 87 cents per sf. Area brokers familiar with problem tracts tell GlobeSt.com the land will probably sell for $15,000 per acre, or about 34 cents per sf.

"Even though the dirt is in a highly residential area, it holds the stigma of being tough to access and potential buyers will capitalize on that fact by bidding down the price," a land broker who has participated in comparable situations tells GlobeSt.com.

If that happens and bids are at rock-bottom price levels, the city could still refuse to sell the land, brokers say. That's what happened last year when bids came in too low for the city to accept, city planners confirm to GlobeSt.com.

"In that scenario, the city would merely hold on to the surplus dirt until the market brings in a better price," a local private planner, not associated with the transaction, tells GlobeSt.com.