The selling price for the Natrona County Library's possible new home is about three times more than the Natrona County assessor's fair market price.

Some Casper Realtors and other Natrona County officials have varying opinions on whether the price is fair.

Former state legislator Dick Sadler doesn't approve of the roughly $2.7 million difference, and thinks the taxpayers might be "getting gouged."

Randy Hall, a Realtor for BrokerOne Real Estate and a principal partner with the company selling the land, said the price is justifiable.

The county uses a different system of appraisal. Hall said the land may have appraised for much more if the appraisal was done by a private firm for a bank loan.

Most prime commercial property in downtown Casper is selling for between $9 and $11 per square foot, he said.

The library hopes to buy the 8.8-acre parcel wedged near the North Platte River and First Street for slightly less than $3.8 million, or roughly $10 per square foot. The county assessor's office reported fair market value on the property as just under $1.1 million.

To fund the project, library officials are asking Natrona County taxpayers to vote yes Nov. 4 on a proposal to create a temporary sixth-cent sales tax. If it's approved, it would take about 27 months for the penny tax to accumulate the required $43.25 million for the new building and grounds.

Kay Music, the chief appraiser for the county assessor's office, said it's all about supply and demand.

When assigning value to properties, she first looks at prior sales on the property. She then tries to find sales on similar pieces of property with parallel characteristics before arriving at the appraised value.

"As far as the asking price," she said, "it may not be uncommon, in certain instances, to be that far off. If they have had a whiff that the city or county is after the land, it's not uncommon to ask a great deal more."

It's about desirability, she said. It becomes a seller's market.

"They want it, and you have it, and they will have to pay what you want," she said.

The price of the property "is what it is," said library director Bill Nelson.

If the library board of trustees could have negotiated a lower price, it would have, but this was the price of the property.

About $10 per square foot is a fair assessment for prime downtown property, said another local Realtor, Glen Taylor. But he's not sure the entire 8.8 acres is prime real estate.

"That's a significant difference," the Equity Brokers Realtor said of the two values.

Local commercial appraiser Anne Johnson said it is normal for the county's assessed values to be lower than market value.

"It's not unusual for the assessor's market value appraisal to be lower than the actual market value. The degree that it's lower, I couldn't say," she said. "You know if it was at all higher, someone would protest their taxes."

The library board and staff have been working on this project for more than three years, and said a new library is critical for the county's growing population.

Library officials held countless meetings to find the perfect piece of property, and most people said they wanted the library to stay near downtown.

Contact city reporter Christine Robinson at (307) 266-0639 or christine.robinson@trib.com.