Group to buy historic building

CELINA - Plans are in the works for a company to buy a now rehabbed historical building in Celina and launch a mixed-use commercial enterprise on its first floor.

Mercer County commissioners on Tuesday agreed to advertise a notice of intent to request the state to release federal funds to purchase the so-called Lininger or Old Millie building at 202 S. Main St., and remodel its interior. The total building project is estimated to cost $450,368, per commissioners' resolution.

The federal funds are county revolving loan dollars, county community development director Jared Ebbing said. Asked for project details, Ebbing said a new LLC being formed plans to apply for a county revolving loan in the next few weeks to acquire the building "now that it's no longer structurally in danger of falling down."

Ebbing said the LLC plans to remodel the first floor for a mixed-use commercial purpose, potentially with food service in part of the building. Further details will be released once the county requests the release of funds next week, Ebbing said.

The revolving-loan program is funded by grants from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that are funneled through the state. The local economic development office reviews, approves and distributes the funding.

The low-interest county revolving loans can be used to buy fixed assets such as land, buildings, machinery and equipment and also as working capital to expand an existing or startup business. Unless used for local infrastructure needs or removal of blight and slums, the loans are repaid to the fund with interest to provide funding for future loans.

The building recently was brought up to code by Wellman Brothers Inc. of Coldwater. The revised contract total after two change orders is $300,358.

Commissioners in October selected Wellman Brothers. to rehabilitate the structure that had been determined by city officials to be unsafe. Structural issues had caused the facade of the building to crack and windows to dislodge and fall onto the sidewalk below. The building is owned by Amber, Holly and Brenda Lefeld, according to county records.

City safety service director Tom Hitchcock sent a letter dated Feb. 26, 2019, to the owners notifying them that the building was unsafe, citing violations that included interior or exterior walls or other vertical structural elements that list, lean or buckle. The owners were ordered to make necessary repairs to make the building safe or to raze and remove it. Failure to do so would have resulted in the city's assumption of repairs or demolition.

Not wanting to lose a historic downtown building, Ebbing said county officials reached out to the state and learned of the Target of Opportunity Program run through the Ohio Development Services Agency.

Ebbing on behalf of the county successfully applied for a $250,000 grant. The owners were required to provide a 20% match. The county was allotted $12,500 of the grant for administrative costs such as engineering.

"The project looks great. We saved the building. Make no mistake, had it not been for that grant, that building probably would have needed to come down," Ebbing said on Tuesday. "We helped get the grant to make that building once again viable. Now it is viable."