Council approves 1st vote to rezone McGregor land

By Robert Mihalek

Village Council during its meeting Monday approved the first of two votes needed to rezone property for the new campus of Antioch McGregor University.

Council voted 4–0 to approve an ordinance rezoning the property to an Educational Institutional District from Agriculture. Council president Jocelyn Hardman was absent.

Council will hold a second reading and a public hearing on the ordinance at its next meeting, Tuesday, Jan. 17.

Last month, the Village Planning Commission recommended that Council approve the rezoning request, provided that several conditions be met. Those conditions included the creation by McGregor of an accurate legal description and map of the land to be rezoned and a cost-benefit analysis by the Village of the new campus.

Council member Bruce Rickenbach, who is also the chairman of the Planning Commission, said that the plan board’s conditions have been met.

McGregor is seeking to rezone 11.12 acres of property located in the planned Center for Business and Education, the commerce park being developed by Community Resources. The McGregor campus is seen as the anchor of the commerce park and is located at the corner of East Enon and Dayton-Yellow Springs Roads.

The total acreage of the Center for Business and Education is 46 acres. Community Resources purchased the property in 2004 with a $300,000 loan from the Village and a $100,000 grant from the Yellow Springs Community Foundation.

Construction of the new campus is expected to begin this spring, and the new campus could be open in the fall of 2007.

Though she voted for the ordinance, Council member Judith Hempfling expressed concern for McGregor’s move. While acknowledging the work of community members to keep McGregor in Yellow Springs, Hempfling said “many people” at Antioch College and at McGregor are worried that the new campus “could be detrimental to the college.” She urged the community to support Antioch College.

Hempfling also said the McGregor campus could increase pressure to develop other properties on the western edge of town, so she said the community needs to think about how to “counteract” that pressure.

Pointing out that public funds were used to purchase land for the commerce park, Hempfling asked how the public can have input in the Center for Business and Education and the McGregor campus. Her question went unanswered by other Council members and representatives of Community Resources who were in the audience.

Interim Village Manager Phil Hawkey provided Council with a cost-benefit analysis of a new McGregor campus. He described the report as “general” and said he did not launch into “what ifs” about future possibilities for McGregor.

For instance, in his analysis, Hawkey said the Village would not gain additional income tax revenue because jobs at McGregor would simply move. He did report that construction jobs would temporarily increase revenue and commerce in town.

He reported that an “additional major building” would increase the Village’s electric revenue, and estimated that the Village could pay back in seven months the cost of extending electric lines to the new campus. He also said “modern, efficient equipment” should reduce peak electricity demands.

Hawkey said the cost of building new streets and extending water and sewer lines is expected to be paid for with a federal grant that McGregor and Community Resources applied for. He also reported that the Village would have more infrastructure to maintain.

In other Council business:
• Council approved by 4–0 three pieces of financial legislation. The first was an ordinance approving a temporary budget for 2006. Council will hold a second reading on the ordinance at its Jan. 17 meeting. Hawkey said the temporary budget represents 25 percent of expenditures from 2005.

Another piece of legislation was a resolution authorizing the Village to “make such ordinary expenditures as are necessary to continue day-to-day operations.”

Both measures are necessary since Council has not approved the 2006 Village budget. Council plans to set dates to work on the budget at its next meeting. This schedule coincides with the arrival of the new Village manager, Eric Swansen.

The last piece of legislation was a resolution authorizing the manager to spend funds for sundry supplies for employees, officials and volunteers.

• Council authorized Hawkey to express the Village’s support of a campaign to encourage the auto industry to develop lug-in hybrid electric vehicles. The campaign is led by the American Public Power Association.

• Hawkey expressed appreciation for Village department heads and staff members, Council and Village commission members for the support he received during his two stints as the interim manager during the last year.

Contact: rmihalek@ysnews.com