November 25, 2004

Group says commerce park will feature Yellow Springs values

By Robert Mihalek

Dan Young, the vice chairman of Community Resources, said that the commerce park the organization is developing would not contain retail businesses, explaining that retail shops have “never been a part of our plan.”

During a presentation before Village Council at its Nov. 15 meeting, Young said that Community Resources would soon seek to annex the property under the Cooperative Economic Development Agreement (CEDA), a pact devised by Council and the Miami Township trustees to promote business growth. The commerce park will be built on land at East Enon and Dayton-Yellow Springs Roads, identified in the CEDA as suitable for development.

By offering his comments about retail businesses, Young sought to distance the commerce park from the controversy brewing over the Fogg property, whose owners are seeking to annex that farm into the village so they can develop it.

One of the owners of the farm, Doug Miller of HRI Commercial Realty, has said that he wants to place a mixed-use development on the farm that could include apartments, residences for people 55 and older, a restaurant and service-oriented businesses such as a bank, dry cleaner or copy shop. At a Council meeting in September, Miller described the commercial portion of the development as a strip mall, which drew opposition from some local residents, including a group called VALID, or Villagers Addressing Land Issues and Development, who say that such businesses on the edge of town could hurt downtown.

Miller has said he wants to provide services that complement the commerce park, especially the new campus for Antioch University McGregor, which is the development’s first tenant.

At least three times during his presentation, Young said that retail businesses would not be a part of the commerce park, which is called the Center for Business and Education, and is across the street from the Fogg farm. Community Resources “wants to create something that complements the village,” Young said, but would not create competition for downtown with “another retail center.”

“I look forward to showing everyone the Yellow Springs way to do smart, controlled growth,” said Young, who is also the CEO of Young’s Jersey Dairy.

After the meeting, Young said that with his presentation he had hoped to “get out in front of” the controversy over the Fogg development and clarify any misperceptions about the commerce park.

Young said that Community Resources is “promoting economic vitality in Yellow Springs that is consistent with the values of Yellow Springs.”

When asked to define those values, Carol Gasho, the chairwoman of Community Resources, said Yellow Springs values include embracing diversity as well as businesses that operate on “integrity and speaking the truth.”

That’s “what Community Resources will look for” when seeking tenants, said Gasho, who is also the plant manager at The Antioch Company.

Once filled with businesses, the commerce park has the potential to provide 300 to 400 jobs, Young said, and those workers will support downtown businesses. He estimated that a third of those jobs would be new.

Community Resources is investigating the potential for providing the park with geothermal energy and water conservation systems, Young said. He also said the organization plans to incorporate principles from the LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System, a national standard for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings created by the U.S. Green Building Council. He said that Community Resources would “seek out businesses that embrace” a similar philosophy.

Young said the commerce park could contain research and office space, light industrial companies and what he called “home-grown businesses.” He said Community Resources has identified a “few businesses that might be able to expand” in several years and could move to the park. Young would not name those businesses. One current business owner has called him about moving to the park, he said.

In October, the Antioch University Board of Trustees approved plans to spend up to $15 million on McGregor’s new campus. Young said that McGregor will occupy a 60,000-square-foot facility on about 10 acres of land. The commerce park property is a total of 46 acres. Antioch McGregor’s new campus will allow the university to increase enrollment and expand its programs.

Young said that the business park might include short-term housing for McGregor students and an amphitheater. Though he stressed that the park won’t have retail businesses, he said McGregor might open a cafeteria and bookstore for students.

He said that construction of the McGregor campus should start next summer or fall, and would likely be completed in the fall of 2007.

Community Resources members said that they plan to offer a detailed presentation of the park, most likely in January.

Last summer, Community Resources purchased the commerce park site from Vernay Laboratories for $400,000. Council loaned the organization $300,000 for the deal, and the Yellow Springs Community Foundation provided another $100,000. Council has also provided Community Resources some funding for administrative expenses.

After the meeting, Young indicated that Community Resources would apply for annexation before the end of the year and that the property would officially be annexed by next spring.

Council member George Pitstick praised efforts to improve academic resources, including continuing education services, in Yellow Springs.

Young said that Community Resources is investigating various funding sources and grants to aid in construction and pay for infrastructure. He said he could not guarantee that the Village would not have to pay for some of the park’s infrastructure.

When asked what type of tax incentives the Village might make available for the commerce park, Council president Tony Arnett was evasive, saying that he has seen “survey after survey after survey of CEOs” who say that money is “low on the list” of criteria that influence where they locate their businesses.

Instead, Arnett said, the “key” criteria are community reception, marketing, and the presence of an educated workforce. Arnett said he hopes the community will be receptive to new businesses.

Arnett did not say that last year Council identified a list of nine incentives the Village and Miami Township could offer to businesses to aid in the effort to develop the commerce park. Among the items on the list are abatements of personal property taxes and real estate; tax-increment financing, which allows businesses to borrow against future property taxes to fund improvements; subsidizing utility rates or reducing or eliminating hookup fees; rebating corporate income taxes; and providing stormwater management.

Except for the $300,000 loan, Council has not discussed offering financial incentives for the commerce park.

Council was also asked whether the development of the Vernay land would set a pattern for other construction on the western edge of Yellow Springs.

Arnett said that the Village would handle development plans on a “case-by-case basis.” But he added that the park would “create a new use” of land in that area that “will change how adjacent properties are viewed.”

The Pitstick Farm, which is north of the commerce park, has been for sale for several months, and, of course, the Fogg property, which is included in the CEDA, is being eyed for development.