KENT — Kent State University wants to sell its former golf course.
The university’s Board of Trustees on Wednesday approved a resolution seeking approval from the Ohio General Assembly to sell surplus real estate properties, including the former Kent State University Golf Course, 12 parcels in Kent and Brimfield south of state Route 261 and three parcels just south of Dix Stadium.
The board approved deeming the parcels surplus real estate assets available for sale, but the university needs approval from the state legislature before it can sell the properties. With the board’s vote, KSU will now move forward with seeking that approval.
Senior vice president for finance and administration Mark Polatajko said the university reviewed all of its real estate holdings as part of investing in its $1 billion, 10-year Gateway Master Plan.
According to the board, factors considered included proximity to core campus, accessibility, development potential or general needs consistent with the Kent State mission and vision, with those physically disconnected from the campus deemed non-strategic.
The Kent State Golf Course, located west of campus on state Route 59 in Franklin Township, closed at the end of 2016 after 50 years of service and a five-year trend of declining revenues and mounting operating losses, the Beacon Journal/Ohio.com reported at the time. Kent State purchased the 18-hole par 70 course, located in Franklin Township, in 1966.
The university is also retaining broker services and starting marketing of the properties. If the state approves Kent’s request, individual future sales of property would still have to be brought back before the board of trustees for a vote.
In other action Wednesday, the board:
• Approved moving forward with the acquisition of 224 S. Willow St. near the College of Architecture and Environmental Design as part of the university’s Gateway Master Plan. With a proposed $700,000 purchase price — the same as its appraised value — the property has been on the university’s radar for nearly 10 years, Polatajko said.
• Approved adding air conditioning to student rooms in Dunbar Hall, which was built in 1957 and is home to 260 students. Dunbar is one of only two residence halls on campus without air conditioning; the other is Verder Hall. Residence Services set aside $2.125 million for the work, which should be done by the start of next fall semester.
• Approved returning vacant land next to the university’s Regional Academic Center in Twinsburg appraised at about $205,000 and donated to the university in 2015 to its original donor, CK Properties Limited. The university initially planned to create a new campus entrance on the space, but because of a conservation easement on the property, that’s not possible.
• Approved three new majors: actuarial mathematics; school library media K-12 within the Master of Library and Information Science degree; and criminology and justice studies within the Associate of Applied Science degree. All three will be effective fall 2019 pending approval from the state.
Beacon Journal reporter Emily Mills can be reached at 330-996-3334, [email protected] and @EmilyMills818.
Be the first to comment