Ohio State pays church to halt development

COLUMBUS (AP) — Ohio State University says it’s paying $12.8 million to a church adjacent to its campus in exchange for the congregation agreeing not to develop student housing on the property.

The Columbus Dispatch reports that OSU will pay St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church $7.5 million now and make annual payments of about $213,000 for 25 years.

The church, which abuts the Columbus campus, had been working with a developer on an apartment building that would have accommodated about 280 students.

University officials expressed concern with the project about a year ago and began negotiating a deal. They said it didn’t fit with zoning laws and would be “a potential functional and aesthetic detriment to an important gateway into the surrounding campus area.”

The church has been there since 1928.