OHIO State OKs move of regional ODOT office

Democrats objected to the move.
By JEFF ORTEGA
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
COLUMBUS -- Despite lingering questions, the State Controlling Board has approved the move of the Ohio Department of Transportation regional offices from Ravenna to suburban Akron.
After heavy questioning from Democratic state Sen. Tom Roberts, the board voted 6-1 Monday to allow the department to spend $6.7 million to buy land and buildings in Summit County to move the District 4 regional offices. Roberts voted no.
ODOT officials said the move to the new site in suburban Coventry Township will begin in the spring.
Roberts said he voted no because of questions surrounding the deal.
"I guess I'm just uneasy," said Roberts, of Dayton. "There are some unsettling facts here."
His questions
He questioned why the sellers, identified as 2088 Place Limited LLC, were selling the 10.5-acre property to the state for $6.7 million when they bought the property in June for about $5 million.
The property, at 2088 S. Arlington Road, is the former FedEx Custom Critical corporate headquarters/logistics center site.
ODOT officials said the June price was influenced by terms for constructing a new FedEx facility elsewhere in the Akron area. Officials with 2088 Place Limited LLC couldn't immediately be reached Monday to comment.
Mohamed Darwish, the District 4 deputy director, said three appraisals were done on the Coventry Township site, and they came in at $6.45 million, $6.8 million and $10 million.
ODOT officials also said buying the Summit County site at $6.7 million plus making about $4.2 million worth of renovations would still be nearly $9 million less than spending $19.6 million to build a new facility.
The proposed new ODOT site has buildings and land to accommodate the headquarters and space for a future garage maintenance area, ODOT officials said. About 200 employees would be housed at the proposed new facility.
ODOT officials said the current District 4 regional offices, which serve Ashtabula, Mahoning, Portage, Stark, Summit and Trumbull counties, are old and in major need of renovations.
Ravenna's loss
Ravenna Mayor Paul H. Jones, who tried unsuccessfully to address the controlling board on the proposed move, called the state's purchase a "sweetheart deal" and said moving the transportation department's district offices to Summit County would cost Ravenna more than $100,000 annually in income tax revenue.
Jones said if the state department wanted to move its district offices, the city of Ravenna had other potential sites to consider.
"Why build at all?" Jones said outside the board's chambers.