ASHLAND — Land behind the Ashland County Jail is slated for a housing development. 

Ashland City Council unanimously approved the $1 million sale to Granger Property Development on Tuesday. 

The Cleveland-based developer intends to construct between 100 and 125 “market-rate, build-to-rent units,” said Ashland Mayor Matt Miller. 

Those units will be located on 30 acres between the Ashland County Jail and Hillcrest Drive, on what’s known as the Siler property. Each unit will be between 1,200 and 1,400 square feet and have two or three bedrooms, Miller said. 

Once built, the units will be rented, Miller said. 

The property’s sale — which has yet to be recorded at the county level — represents the largest transaction of city-owned land. The $1 million price point means the land sold for $33,036 per acre.

“This is very exciting, and very significant for the future of the city,” Miller said. 

Though city officials have been talking about this transaction for “quite some time,” the project remains in its infancy stages. Shane Kremser, the city’s engineer, said site plans have yet to be submitted by the developer.

The Siler home, which currently sits vacant, could become an amenity site on the development, Miller said. 

Granger gets one year for due diligence on the property and construction must begin within three years after closing. Completion must be within five years.

If the developer doesn’t complete the project within that timeframe, the city can purchase the land back from Granger for $1 million.