After passing a bond in May, the city of University Heights has acquired a section of wooded land near Kinnick Stadium.

An 11-acre piece of land near Kinnick Stadium is changing hands, and officials are unsure yet what it will be used for.

University Heights won an auction for the section of wooded land near Kinnick on June 14.

The city paid $480,000 for the land parcel, which had previously been owned by the Swisher family trust. The land had been in the family for more than 100 years, University Heights Mayor Louise From said.

The purchase was funded by a general-obligation bond that community members had passed on May 1. The bond required 60 percent to pass; it received 76 percent of the vote. From said the bond was meant to acquire and develop the parcel land as a park or a green space.

“There’s real big support by our residents to purchase this property,” From said.

The area is heavily wooded. The University Heights City Council and meetings with residents will decide the land’s future, a process From said could take months, possibly a year.

She said she is excited that the city now owns the land, because she wasn’t sure if it would ever go up for sale.

As of now, there isn’t any plan to clear the area and turn it into a parking lot or tailgating site, given its proximity to Kinnick, she said.

Although the city and community members have yet to decide on the land’s use, From said, the area has been untouched for a long time. She believes that the family would want the city to preserve it.

University Heights City Councilor Virginia Miller is on board with preserving the woods and adding hiking trails to allow community members to enjoy the space.

“I think, personally, the best use for this land is as a woodland, and I’m not really interested in clearing it for any purposes,” Miller said. “It’s an amazing resource to have this wooded area in a highly developed area, and I think that value only changes over time.”

— By Jonathan House