Posted: 4:47 p.m.Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2015

Church makes top bid to buy former Middletown school building

By Rick McCrabb

Staff Writer

MIDDLETOWN — 

    The pastor of a Middletown church made one thing loud andclear: He doesn’t want to get into the school business.

    But Berachah Baptist Church wants to expandand create more opportunities for residents in areas of community health andwellness, arts and education, service agency outreach, neighborhood assistanceand partnering with the Middletown City Schools District, the Rev. LamarFerrell told the school board Monday night.

    The church was the highest bidder at a liveauction last month for the former Verity Middle School property, 1900 JohnsRoad, and the nearly 60 acres that surround the building. Berachah bid $293,000for all three parcels, $3,000 more than the Middletown Arts Association, saidGeorge Long, district business manager. The property was appraised at $740,000,he said.

     By selling the property, the district saysit will save $330,000 — the cost of demolition — and that money can be spentrenovating Middletown High School and buildinga middle school, Long said. He said if the school was demolished, the 60 acreswould be appraised at $250,000.

Ferrellmade a 20-minute presentation during Monday’s meeting, then board members wentinto a 30-minute executive session. When members returned, board PresidentMarcia Andrew announced a decision on the property would be made at the nextmeeting on Jan. 26.

    After the meeting, several of the boardmembers hugged and congratulated Ferrell, leaving him optimistic, he said.

Andrewsaid she had hoped the bids would have been higher, though she didn’t have a specificamount in mind. She couldn’t predict if board members would vote to approve thesale of the school to the church, she said.

    She called the church’s plans to renovatethe school “a positive thing to serve a lot of our students could be beneficialfor community as a whole … nice to hear that kind of positive plan.”

    Berachah is trying to buy a former schoolbuilding at the same time a similar sale is raising concern in Monroe. Last fall, the future of the former Lemon Monroe High School became acontroversial and divisive issue in the community as some wanted to see theformer building sold to the First Church of God for $1 in exchange for thechurch to renovate, redevelop and demolish portions of the building.

     It also resulted in the American HumanistAssociation’s legal arm threatening a lawsuit citing a possible church andstate violation and a North Carolinahumanist offering to purchase the land to be used for public use. A group ofresidents created a committee, Since 1871, to oppose the proposed sale becausethey said public land should stay in public control.

    There was another proposal for the board totransfer the property to the city that would demolish the building andredevelop the 29-acre parcel. City officials started a brownfield study to seeif Monroe couldobtain a low-interest loan to address the brownfield or environmental issues inthe building.

Aftera number of meetings, the board opted to reject all of the proposals.

    Ferrell said restoration of the former Verity School,which closed in 2012 as a way to reduce $5 million from the district’s budget,is estimated at $1.6 million, meaning the total investment will be about $1.9million. Berachah has secured a feasibility study and master site plan from theMcKnight Group, a Grove City-based company, and the church is ready to moveahead with construction, Ferrell said.

    Berachah has been approved for financingthrough American Saving Bank and the church, which worships in Middletown High School, is debt free, he stressed.He said the capital campaign is called Overflow and the first offering is setfor April 12. The goal is to raise $700,000 over the next three years, he said.

    Ferrell said the renovating andre-purposing of the property will be the “catalyst allowing us to bless thiscommunity more powerful than ever before.” He called the property “a hub and wewant to add some spokes. We are very excited.”

Theplans call for a 1,000-seat sanctuary to be built on the front of the schoolthat faces Breiel Boulevard.Ferrell said the property would be used to serve the community in numerousways, including seasonal outreach at Freedom Court, summer lunch program, VacationBible School,community health clinic, Red Cross classes, children’s summer theatre,after-school mentoring, community rooms, Upward Sports, practice fields andElley’s Hope Playground, designated for children with disabilities, at nearby Lefferson Park.

    “This is what we are going to do,” thereverend said slowly, stressing every word.

Heencouraged the board to approve the sale to Berachah because of the church’sstrong track record. He said through the church’s Hands & Feet ministry, 60Middletownhomes have been renovated in the last seven years, and five internationalprojects have been completed.

Yearsago, the board faced a similar decision on the former Lincoln Schoolon Central Avenue.The school has housed various businesses over the years, but residents havecriticized the overall appearance of the building and the property. Ferrellguaranteed that Verity wouldn’t become another eyesore in the city.

    “We all want to make Middletown better,”said Ferrell, who added that while some are running from the city, the churchand its members are running toward the city.

    Forty-two was an important number, Ferrellsaid. He wondered what the city will look like 42 years from now in 2057, 100years after Middletown was named an All-American City. Ferrell joked he may not be alivethen — he’ll be 99 — but he wants the city to be a better place for his twochildren and any possible grandchildren.

    “We are all in,” he said. “We are here tobless. The best is yet to come.”

BY THE NUMBERS

$7,000: Bid for the 20 acres inthe back of the property

$217,000: Bid for the schoolbuilding and the 40 acres

$293,000: Bid for the school andthe entire property

$290,000: Second highest bid

$330,000: What the district says itwill save in demolition costs

$740,000: Appraised value of theproperty

$1.6 million: Estimated restorationcost of the property

SOURCES: Middletown City School Districtand Berachah Baptist Church