Thursday, July 28, 2016
It was refreshing to read the intelligent comments about the future of Oakhill Renaissance Place from Mahoning County commissioners – after the drumbeat of criticism of the county’s ownership of the former South Side Medical Center complex.
As has been widely reported for years – backed up by court documents – the opposition to the Oakhill Renaissance project was led by Mahoning Valley businessman Anthony M. Cafaro Sr., the retired president of the Cafaro Co.
Cafaro masterminded a criminal conspiracy to block county commissioners from buying the complex a decade ago. He had an ally in then Commissioner John A. McNally, who voted against the purchase. Fortunately, commissioners Anthony Traficanti and David Ludt refused to be intimidated by Cafaro and his minions, and thus the transaction was finalized.
McNally, who has a criminal record stemming from his involvement in the Cafaro conspiracy, is now the mayor of Youngstown. He has announced his intention to run for re-election next year.
It is fortunate McNally isn’t still in county government because he would be continuing his campaign on behalf of Cafaro.
But it is also fortunate that the three commissioners now in office, Traficanti, Carol Rimedio-Righetti and David Ditzler, understand the responsibility they bear as protectors of the public treasury.
As Ditzler said in a front-page story published earlier this month in The Vindicator headlined “Renaissance at Oakhill?”: “We’re just looking at every option available because it’s an asset for the county and we have to utilize it.”
An option that Ditzler favors, which Traficanti and Rimedio-Righetti are willing to study, envisions the relocation of administrative offices in the courthouse and administration building downtown to Oakhill Renaissance. Only the prosecutor’s office would not move out of downtown. It would be relocated to the county courthouse.
county officeholders
Ditzler, who succeeded McNally in 2013, is aware that what he is proposing will require buy-in from all the officeholders who will be affected. There will be logistical challenges, but his vision for the future of Oakhill Renaissance is important.
The commissioners intend to meet later this month or in August with county government officials to discuss how the former hospital complex can be made financially viable.
There undoubtedly are county residents who share Cafaro’s view that Oakhill Renaissance is a money pit. However, we believe Ditzler is on the right track when he says it’s ideally suited for placing administrative offices under one roof.
Indeed, this newspaper has long argued that government belongs in Youngstown’s central business district, which is why we led the campaign for the construction of the George V. Voinovich Government Center and the Mahoning County Children Services office building.
We, therefore, strongly advocated county government’s purchase of Oakhill Renaissance in federal bankruptcy court.
Two months ago, we were proven right about the project when county Auditor Ralph Meacham issued a report based on his financial analysis. It proved the naysayers wrong.
Although the county owes $11.4 million of the $15.2 million it borrowed to renovate the former South Side hospital, Meacham did not send up red flags.
“I don’t think it’s a burden that the county cannot maintain,” the county auditor said. He pointed out that the bond-rating agencies would have issued warnings if they believed county government was overextended financially.
A decade ago, after then commissioners Traficanti and Ludt voted to buy Oakhill, we had this to say:
“There are those who will be rooting for the commissioners to fail in this ambitious endeavor. That is a shame, because the commissioners have stepped up to save the Oakhill complex from certain deterioration and almost inevitable demolition if it were left unoccupied.
Commissioners Ditzler, Traficanti and Rimedio-Righetti are to be commended for evaluating the long-range viability of Oakhill Renaissance Place.