Mike Wolanin | The Republic An interior view of the former Sears building recently owned and occupied by Cummins in Columbus, Ind., Friday, May 24, 2024. The City of Columbus recently purchased the building from Cummins.
The Columbus City Council approved the first reading of an ordinance to appropriate money to pay for maintenance of the former Sears building for the rest of the year.
The vote was 8-0 to appropriate $75,000 for the maintenance of the building, which the city purchased from Cummins Inc. for $4.2 million using tax-increment-financing (TIF) funds from the Central Economic Development Area last month.
The central TIF has a projected ending balance for this year of $23 million, Redevelopment Commission President Al Roszczyk said previously.
Ordinances must be passed on two readings to be approved. Councilman Chris Bartels, R-District 1, was absent.
City officials have proposed a potential conference center at the site, though no final decisions have been made on the building’s future use. What will ultimately happen with the building, city officials have said, will be determined by the results of the city’s new downtown plan “Columbus Downtown 2030.”
The appropriated money for the maintenance would come from the Columbus Redevelopment Fund, which Director of Redevelopment Heather Pope said captures interest on the city’s TIF districts. The fund’s balance currently sits around $2 million, according to Pope.
The council voted 5-2 to allow for the purchase on May 21 after the Columbus Redevelopment Commission executed a purchase-sales agreement for the building on March 18. Expenditures greater than $500,000 require council approval.
Council members who approved the purchase felt as though the city should act as a steward, purchase the building and then seek input from the community through the new plan to decide on its use, continuing a city strategy of utilizing public-private partnerships to encourage cohesive development.
Those opposed, Councilman Bartels and Councilman Jay Foyst, R-District 6, said the city was engaging in real estate speculation and should leave the fate of the building to the free market and not spend city funds.
The redevelopment commission closed on the 91,380-square-foot property at 323 Brown St. and adjoining parking lot on May 30. All closing documents have been completed and received, plus all utilities have been transferred, Pope said, adding YES Cinema’s lease has been reassigned.
The existing parking lot to the west of the building and south of Hotel Indigo will be open to the public and considered free long-term parking until the site is ready to be developed, Pope previously told The Republic.
City officials have done a walk-through of the building, and Pope said the city department of public works has helped out extensively, working with Cummins on the building management system, water softener, HVAC system and more.
Public works will run their sweeper in the parking lot “every couple of weeks to keep it nice” and will also assist with snow removal around the building once winter arrives, Pope told the council.
After being asked by Councilwoman Elaine Hilber, D-District 2, how much the maintenance will cost next year, Pope ran through the maintenance costs since 2021 while the property was still vacant.
Maintenance costs in 2021 were $131,829, $157,954 in 2022 and $136,440 in 2023, according to Pope.
The money to pay for the maintenance costs next year would also come out of the Columbus Redevelopment Fund, Pope said.
