Posted: 9:30 a.m.Friday, May 6, 2016

Middletown pays $20K to buy backbuilding it donated to company

ByMike Rutledge

Staff Writer

MIDDLETOWN — 

Cityand elected officials have few details about why it cost $20,000 to buy back abuilding the city donated four years ago, but they remain confident that thestructure can be a valuable asset in the future.

City Council voted unanimouslyTuesday to pay $20,000 for the former Middletown Area Senior Citizens Centerbuilding at thesouthwest corner of Columbia Avenue and Verity Parkway. This is the same buildingthe city it donated four years ago for use by Cincinnati State Technical &Community College, but the school does not have plans to use it.

Beforethe 5-0 vote, City Manager Doug Adkins said the $20,000 purchase pricerepresents costs that Higher Education Partners, owners of the building, “haveincurred to date in purchasing and carrying costs associated with the building,in lieu of putting it back out for sale.”

Accordingto Journal-News articles, the city donated the building to Higher EducationPartners in 2012. HEP signed a deal with the city topurchase the former CG&E building at 1 N. Main St. for $202,000 and accepta donation of the former senior center building.

Adkinsclarified his comments Thursday to the Journal-News in an email, writing, “Wedonated the building but there were still legal costs, etc., associated withthe transfer” in an email.

The$20,000 figure was provided by HEP to the city without detail, according toAdkins.

“Theyobviously had some utility, insurance costs, etc., over the past 3-4 years thatI assume without knowing, went into that number.”

Askedwhether the city had asked for an itemized list of those costs, he wrote: “No.”

“Thatwas the price if we wanted the building back,” Adkins wrote in an email. “Thedetail wasn’t going to change the discussion or the decision.”

Officialsfrom HEP on Thursday did not respond to a request for comment.

“Cincinnati State does not have have a future usefor that building,” Adkins told members of council before their vote.

“It’sin our best interest to take that building back and protect that use,” he said.

Thecity approved the $20,000 purchase as an emergency measure — meaningconsideration was needed at just one council meeting.

Becausethe city charter discourages use of one-meeting decisions — partly because theylimit the opportunity for the public to comment on pending council decisions —at least four of council’s five members must be present at a meeting, and allpresent must vote to consider legislation on an emergency basis.

Askedwhy he recommended city council approve the legislation as an emergencymeasure, Adkins declined to give his reason.

“HEPstated why they intended to transfer the building now verbally and asked thatwe not share that information,” he wrote in an email to the Journal-News.

CouncilMember Steve Bohannon said Thursday he realized the city was buying a buildingit had donated to HEP, and did so without seeing a list of the costs theorganization claimed it had paid.

“No,we have not seen any kind of an itemized list as to what the costs they haveincurred over the last four years with the building,” he said.

“Theyjust came to us and said, ‘We’ve got $20,000 tied up in it so far, and if youwant it, if you’re willing to pay us back what we’ve got in it, then that’swhat we’ll do for you,’ ” Bohannon said.

Beforethe vote, Council Member Talbott Moon asked Adkins whether he saw the buildinghaving value in the future, given recent interest in revitalizing the city’sdowntown.

“Ithink you said it exactly right: It’s in the future,” Adkins answered. “Thatbuilding does have some mechanical issues that we’re going to have to address,but there is room in that building, it’s got a fair amount of footprint.”

Cityoffices could be put in the building, some of it could be rented out, “or weget a developer to use it for another purpose,” he said. “I think, yes, as timegoes on it has more value.”

Cityofficials have three options for the building, according to Adkins: sell it,either with or without a real-estate agent; “renovate it and use the space forcity functions”; or “demolish and use it for green space or park space.”

Bohannonsaid he considered the transaction a good deal for Middletown: “It’s a good building in town,and it’s right where we want we want it to be, right next to our city building,so we can utilize it for things regarding the city. We can possibly makeoffices out of it and things like that, which would help us with ourovercrowding we’ve got in the city building, so there’s a lot of differentoptions we could go with. We could even put it out there for bid, and try tosell it to the general public.”

Thecouncil also approved six other other resolutions and ordinances Tuesday, eachof them designated emergency legislation. Among them were:

·                      An ordinance for a $425,000 loan agreement with the OhioDepartment of Transportation to build a two-lane access road from Union Road to theproposed AK Steel Research and Innovation Center and the paving ofseveral roads;

·                      An ordinance allowing the city to spend $42,375 to rehabilitateproduction well No. 7, which in 1999 produced 4 million gallons per day but nowprovides about half that; and

·                      An ordinance that turns over to Butler County MetroParks itseasement with the Miami Conservancy District, allowing the park system toassume control of Bicentennial Commons and the AK Pavilion.

MIDDLETOWN CITY COUNCIL AGENDA

TUESDAY, May 3, 2016

BUSINESS MEETING – 5:30 pm – COUNCIL CHAMBERS – LOWER LEVEL

1. MOMENT OF MEDITATION/PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG

2. ROLL CALL

3. CITIZEN COMMENTS, GUESTS, ORGANIZATIONS’ REPORTS

4. PRESENTATION OF PROCLAMATIONS Corrections Officers Week -May 1-7, 2016 Municipal Clerks Week – May 1-7, 2016 Letter Carriers Food DriveDay - May 14, 2016 5.

CITY MANAGER REPORTS

6. CONSENT AGENDA. . . Matters listed under the ConsentAgenda are considered to be routine and will be enacted by one motion and onevote of consent. There will be no separate discussion of these items. Ifdiscussion is desired, that item will be removed and considered separately.

(a) Approve City Council Minutes: April 19, 2016

(b) Confirm Personnel Appointments: Sarah Fox- StaffAttorney, Law Department Darren McGuire - Maintenance Worker, Public Works& Utilities Department, Division of Sewer Maint. Henry Morgerson -Maintenance Worker, Public Works & Utilities Department, Division of StormwaterSarah Strunks- Corrections Officer, Department of Public Safety, Division ofPolice (c) Receive and File Board and Commission Minutes: Board of ZoningAppeals- January 6, 2015 Architectural Review Board- May 12, 2015 HistoricCommission- October 22, 2015 Planning Commission- December 9, 2015 LibraryBoard- January 19, February 16 & March 15, 2016 Convention & VisitorsBoard- February 15 & March 14, 2016

(d) Receive and File Oaths of Office: Luke Agee, MillicentJackson, Joyce Morris, Christopher Smith

(e) Receive and File Letters of Credit Guaranteeing PublicImprovements Constructed as Part of Hendrickson Road Extension and the New England Heights

(f) Receive, File and Approve the Final Plat for New England Heights Section 11 7. 

MOTION AGENDA

(a)    ToApprove the Saleof a City-owned Vacant Lot (200 Curryer Road) to Richard & Kathy Adkins for$500.

COUNCIL COMMENTS

LEGISLATION

 1. Resolution No. R2016-09, a resolution to make adjustmentsto appropriations for current expenses and other expenditures of the City ofMiddletown, Counties of Butler and Warren, State of Ohio, for the period endingDecember 31, 2016 and declaring an emergency. (General Fund)

 2. Resolution No. R2016-10, a resolution authorizing the purchaseof certain real property, located on the southwest corner of Columbia Avenue and Verity Parkway, and declaring anemergency.

 3. Resolution No. R2016-11, a resolution to make adjustmentsto appropriations for current expenses and other expenditures of the City ofMiddletown, Counties of Butler and Warren, State of Ohio, for the period endingDecember 31, 2016 and declaring an emergency. (General Fund, Auto & GasFund, Storm Water Fund and Municipal Garage Fund)

 4. Resolution No. R2016-12, a resolution to make adjustmentsto appropriations for current expenses and other expenditures of the City ofMiddletown, Counties of Butler and Warren, State of Ohio, for the period endingDecember 31, 2016 and declaring an emergency. (Appropriation Transfer- General Fund)

 5. Ordinance No. O2016-12, an ordinance authorizing the Cityto enter into a loan agreement with the Ohio Department of Transportation anddeliver a related note in the maximum principal amount of $452,000 for thepurpose of paying the costs of constructing a two lane with median access roadof about 1,200 linear feet from Union Road to the proposed AK Steel Researchand Innovation Center and the chemical stabilization and asphalt paving ofWildwood Road, Barnitz Street, Jewell Avenue, Wisconsin Street, Vermont Streetand South Main Street as well as an alley along Barnitz Park, together withrelated improvements and all necessary appurtenances thereto, and authorizingthe execution of any additional documents related thereto, and declaring anemergency.

 6. Ordinance No. O2016-13, an ordinance establishing aprocedure for and authorizing a contract with National Water Services for therehabilitation of a production well and declaring an emergency. 7. OrdinanceNo. O2016-14, an ordinance authorizing an agreement with MetroParks of ButlerCounty regarding the River Center Project and declaring an emergency.

 EXECUTIVE SESSION Under the authority of O.R.C. 121.22 (G)(4) Preparing for, conducting, or reviewing negotiations or bargaining sessionswith public employees concerning their compensation or other terms andconditions of their employment.