After deal fell through 3 years ago, historic Columbus school has new buyer. Here’s the plan
Three years after a similar deal for the property fell through, a former school building in Columbus will be converted into apartments — if the new plan comes to fruition.
Monday night, the Muscogee County School Board came out of closed session and unanimously approved the administration’s request to sell the former Rose Hill School to Oracle Consulting Services, a limited liability company based in Louisville, Kentucky.
No documents about the deal were available on the public version of the agenda. MCSD chief operations officer told the Ledger-Enquirer in an email, “When the attorneys have an official agreement, I will provide one.”
The paper has obtained a copy of the letter of intent describing the agreement.
The purchase price of the property, 433 21st St., would be $350,000. According to the listing on LoopNet.com, the asking price was $495,000 for the 1.8 acres and the 25,547-square-foot, two-story brick building, constructed in the 1890s, with a full basement.
Oracle would pay earnest money of $35,000, credited toward the purchase price, if it is awarded low-income housing tax credits for the project. The notification is expected to come in November 2021.
The deal would close by March 30, 2022, if the tax credits are awarded. If they aren’t, Oracle wouldn’t buy the property.
Oracle plans to renovate the building and create approximately 40 units of affordable housing on the property. With MCSD’s permission, according to the letter, Oracle already has proceeded to have the former school designated by the National Register of Historic Places, which would qualify the project for additional tax credits.
A new life
Rose Hill was constructed as an elementary school. The building most recently was used as the alternative education program for students with severe violations of the district’s behavior code. That program now is housed in the Marshall Success Center.
Three years ago, the board approved selling the property for $535,000 to a limited partnership called Rose Hill Redevelopment, which planned to construct apartments there. But the deal was abandoned because the financing wasn’t approved, Goldberg said in October.
Now, a different company is trying to develop apartments on the property — and this company has already done it at another former school in Columbus.
Oracle converted the Claflin School, 1532 Fifth Ave., into 44 apartments, which opened this year. Caryn Winter, owner of Oracle Consulting, said all those units are leased and the success of that project encouraged Oracle to seek another opportunity in the city.
Working with Columbus Housing Authority
The difference in this project, Winter said, is that Oracle wants to partner with the Columbus Housing Authority to create the apartments at Rose Hill.
CHA executive director Lisa Walters said, “We are interested in partnering with them if the deal seems to be appropriate.”
The partnership would mean CHA would be a co-developer of the project, manage the property and own it upon completion, Walters said. She plans to present the offer to CHA’s real estate committee during its Jan. 7 meeting.
Oracle still would proceed with the project without CHA, Winter said, but “our preference is to partner with the housing authority because of their knowledge and that they’re local in the community. … They’re experts in affordable housing in Columbus, and they would provide management services, and I think that’s very valuable as well.”
Winter added another valuable reason she wants CHA to partner with Oracle.
“The housing authority, they have vouchers, and they have rental assistance available that we as a private developer do not,” she said. “So they would be able to enhance the affordability of the rents.”
Regardless, just like Oracle did at Claflin, the plan calls for renovating Rose Hill instead of demolishing it.
“We would absolutely use the building,” Winter said. “The whole idea is to preserve the historical architecture. It’s a beautiful building in the community.”
Oracle might have other structures built on the property, Winter said, “but they would be designed to complement the historic nature of the Rose Hill School.”
This story was originally published December 21, 2020 at 6:00 AM.
