SEAL BEACH : Leisure World Library to Be Auctioned in June

The county’s Leisure World library branch goes on the auction block in June, and the retirement community’s governing board hopes to be the only bidder.

The 22-year-old facility is one of six county libraries targeted for closure by July. Leisure World’s governing Golden Rain Foundation made a written proposal April 14 to purchase the property, hoping to avoid competing bids.

But some county officials expressed concern that a sale of the property for less than its assessed value without open bidding could be a violation of state law, said Seal Beach Mayor George Brown, a Leisure World resident.

An offer of $54,000 for the land, building and books made by the Golden Rain Foundation in April was rejected. The county made a counteroffer for an undisclosed amount, which the retirement community was poised to accept. But legal concerns raised by county attorneys put the deal on hold.

“In checking with their attorneys, they found a state law that said the proposal may not be totally in keeping with state law,” Brown said.

Brown said the retirement community could not afford to pay anything near the property’s $500,000 assessed value.

Despite continuing negotiations, the county has offered the property for sale and has scheduled a public auction June 24. The library is on land once owned by the 8,700-resident retirement community. About 98% of the library’s users are Leisure World residents, Brown said.