County in line to buy hospital

Among the building's expenses are $417,000 in real estate taxes.
By NANCY TULLIS
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Mahoning County is still the lone bidder for the former Southside Hospital, and Commissioner Anthony Traficanti remains hopeful the county will be successful in its bid to buy the building.
Traficanti has been outspoken about the county's purchase of the former hospital. He said Thursday he is just waiting to receive an official letter from U.S. Bankruptcy Court that the county's bid is in order and accepted.
County Commissioner David N. Ludt has said Oakhill could become "a one-stop shop for county government offices."
Commissioner John McNally IV opposes the purchase, but declined to comment about the former hospital Thursday. McNally has said he is concerned about the condition of the building and whether the county can afford to repair and maintain it.
One of those expenses, for example, is $417,000 in real estate taxes owed on the property, according to Mahoning County Treasurer's Office records.
Potential competition
Traficanti said a decision on sale of the building is to be made at a hearing July 26 in the bankruptcy court . He said although the county is still the lone bidder, there is time for others to drop in an 11th-hour bid, including Cafaro Co. President Anthony M. Cafaro.
Cafaro has said his company intends to analyze costs associated with Oakhill, and, if it can be a profitable operation, make a bid to buy it.
The county leases space at Cafaro's Garland Plaza for the Department of Job and Family Services offices.
Cafaro held a press conference in June to counter Traficanti's talk of moving JFS offices out of the plaza to the former hospital. Cafaro could not be reached Thursday.
The nonprofit Southside Community Development Corp., which owns the building at 345 Oak Hill Ave., filed for Chapter 7 liquidation bankruptcy on May 3. Among the tenants at Oakhill are the Youngstown Health Department, the Mahoning County Coroner's Office and the Mahoning-Youngstown Community Action Partnership.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kay Woods allowed bankruptcy trustee Andrew W. Suhar to borrow up to $100,000 to keep the building open.