Yellow Springs Community Resources

Click here for the notes from an August 4, 2011 meeting among Community Resources, the Village of Yellow Springs and Jacobs Engineering.

In a recent article Lauren Heaton mentions that the process at the Center for
Business and Education (CBE) is taking longer than expected.  It is indeed true that the process is taking longer, but it is also true that expectations have not necessarily been aligned with the reality of the scope of the work.

Community Resources is , however, hopeful that the various parts of the process
will come to fruition and that the economic development potential will become realized.  We are in conversation with the Chamber of Commerce as well as members of the Villageʼs Economic Sustainability Commission.  We have established a development partnership to assist in marketing the complex and feel this will significantly broaden the potential customers.  Community business owners who wish to expand in Yellow Springs can be assured the CBE is a viable option.  Hopefully the economy will improve and financing will become available regionally and nationally to support construction of the quality properties anticipated.

Though it is our desire to do so, Community Resources cannot give a precise
time when groundbreaking will occur.  That event depends on a variety of factors that are outside of our control and involve timelines of the various entities like ODOT and the Village of Yellow Springs.  There are deadlines that need to be met by the various players for instance in the process of getting road annexation accomplished and the infrastructure finally installed.

As to the overall project, it must be remembered that while Community
Resources was instrumental in obtaining nearly $1 million in federal funds for the project, responsibility for administrating these monies is vested with the Village.  They are the manager of the project.  While we would like to give a specific date of groundbreaking and until there is a comprehensive project schedule, any date we would suggest would be speculative.

Community Resources will keep the citizens and businesses informed of
developments.  We share the frustrations of all awaiting recovery of the regional
economy; however, we are confident the CBE will be positioned to enable the Village to participate fully in the recovery.

Sincerely,
Kathryn Van der Heiden
Community Resources President

April 14, 2010

Dear Councilors Hempfling, Askeland, Booth, Walkey, and Wintrow:

This letter comes in response to a communication from Council to Community Resources requesting CR’s formal position on the issue of designation. After thorough consideration, including advice from former members and others present at the beginning, Community Resources (CR) board members believe conditions are not ripe for CR to become designated as the Village community improvement corporation (CIC).

We agree that close cooperation and collaboration between the Yellow Springs Council, Miami Township Trustees, Community Resources and other economic development organizations is imperative. Historically, there has been such collaboration; the consequence is the retention of approximately 100 jobs and 750 college students in the community.

As you know, designation imposes restrictions on our own ability to act and to be responsive in a timely way to the aspirations of the Village. By remaining an independent corporation, the Village retains in CR more tools in its toolbox to address economic development. By remaining undesignated, we are positioned to work creatively with the Chamber of Commerce, the new Yellow Springs economic sustainability committee and the Economic Sustainability Coordinator. CR will continue to work closely together with these entities on potential commercial developments including the retention and expansion of existing businesses.

As a corporation separate from a municipality, CR may assume certain community-building activities that would be difficult, either legally or politically, for the political entities to directly undertake. As an example: a designated CIC can be an effective tool as an agent for a municipality in expediting various administrative functions associated with the development or disposition of public property or other functions. This was the case of Miamisburg and the recovery and re-use of the Mound land and facilities. In any designation the powers and authorities bestowed must be explicitly set forth. The Visioning process is as yet incomplete, so we suggest waiting until a broadly-supported direction is defined and a role identified in which you deem a designated CIC would be effective.

Consistent with the nature of its efforts, CR intends to continue to make our processes and decisions as public as possible. Means include holding public meetings from time to time and information releases regarding significant decision points. Furthermore, we encourage and support Village staff in their responsibility to provide Council (and thereby the community) with regular updates as to the progress of CBE development projects they manage.

CR has long welcomed members of village council, trustees and staff to seats on the CR board; this continues. However, the village solicitor’s opinion, and at times, conflict of interest considerations, have inhibited village representatives from full participation. The invitation remains, however, as you would wish to take advantage of it.

Should in the future, Council and the Trustees deem it appropriate to designate CR as their CIC, upon appropriate resolutions in accordance with ORC 1740.10, we will be happy to entertain the possibility in accordance with our by-laws, which require a super-majority prior to agreeing to such an arrangement.

Best regards,

Lisa Abel Community Resources, Chair

February 11, 2010

Dear Village Councilors,

I write on behalf of all members of the Community Resources Board to express our appreciation for the meeting held on January 13.

As we all know, the Yellow Springs community takes a lively interest in matters that affect it. We are very much aware that the Center for Business and Education is the kind of project that stirs great interest and, perhaps, concern about future directions. We came away from the January 13 meeting with a clear sense that you seek greater transparency, more effective communication, and greater confidence that the Board’s plans are aligned with the best interests of Yellow Springs. We agree. We understand that several Council members are interested in Community Resources becoming a designated CIC; we will continue to work on addressing that question, with emphasis placed on attending to the issues noted above.

Our purpose in writing is this: As we look forward to another opportunity for discussion with you, we seek your suggestions about how best to achieve these goals. To be candid, what steps would you wish the Board to take to assure that we are positioned to discharge our responsibilities in a way that gives you confidence in our work?

With your guidance in hand, we are confident we can pursue the CBE project and such others as may prove appropriate in the future for the success of Yellow Springs.
I will contact you soon to follow up and plan for next steps.

Best regards,

Lisa Abel Chair

Yellow Springs and Miami Township Community Improvement Corporation

(dba: Community Resources)

Community Resources (CR) was incorporate June 17th 1998 and it was determined to be a publicly supported, tax-exempt organization under Internal Revenue Code section 502(c)(3).

As stated in its Code of Regulations, Community Resources was formed exclusively for the purposes authorized for community improvement corporations by OH Revised Code 1724.01 et seq. to provide leadership in the creation and implementation of strategies to address the needs for economic development that are congruent with the values of the community. The basic mission is the retention and expansion of business in the Yellow Springs area. One of its first initiatives was to conduct a commerce park feasibility study under an agreement with the Village. This agreement and the feasibility study results are the basis for where the Center for Business and Education stands today.

September 30, 2002 a Cooperative Economic Development Agreement (CEDA) in accordance with ORC Section 701.07 was established between Miami Township and the Village of Yellow Springs to promote economic development within the designated district. Three properties [the first 14.93 acres, the second 31.259 acres and the third 39.562 acres] on the southern edge of the village on Dayton-Yellow Springs Road were included in this district. The CEDA allowed the Village to annex these properties if they were zoned for commercial use.

May 5th, 2003, Council authorized the Village Manager to enter into a development agreement with CR regarding these properties and to make certain loans pursuant to that agreement [Res. 2003-18]. Under this agreement, CR prepared a master economic development plan and negotiated to acquire properties within the CEDA District.

Funds loaned under the agreement between the Village & CR ($300,000) were part of the purchase price for the first and second of these parcels from Vernay Laboratories, Inc. on June 25, 2004. Education Village, Inc., a 501(c)(2) charitable non-profit subsidiary of CR, held title to this property. Education Village was established by CR for the purpose of developing a Center for Business and Education. These 46.189 acres were annexed to the Village of Yellow Springs April 18th, 2005.

February 24, 2006, 11.144 acres of this property was conveyed to Antioch University for the purpose of constructing a facility to accommodate their McGregor graduate programs. March 2006, the Village Planning Commission approved Concept Plan/Phase of the Antioch PUD-1 Zoning Request. August 2006 ground was broken on this property for the construction of Antioch University McGregor. October 2006, the Village Council approved the final construction plan. Today AUM has nearly 50 full-time employs (almost 80 full-time equivalent employees) and accommodates 750 students.

The remainder of the property [35.227 acres] was rezoned by the Village to Mixed Commerce District in February 2007.

CR applied for, and subsequently received, Utility and Transportation Federal Grants. As a condition of these grants various impact, archeological and soil studies were commissioned. They resulted in a ‘Finding of No Significant Impact’ by the US Army Corps of Engineers on August 20, 2007.

The US Army Corps of Engineers administer one of these grants for the construction of water-related environmental infrastructure and resource protection in the amount totaling $596,000 of which $149,000 was provided from local, matching sources. Of the $447,000 balance, $30,000 was used by the USACE to defray their expenses. The USACE entered into an agreement with the Village to administer this construction effort in April 2007.

The second federal grant under the National Transportation Act is administered through the Ohio Department of Transportation which entered in to Local Public Authority (LPA) Federal Local-Let Project Agreement with the Village in October 2008. Under this agreement, the Village manages the project at the local level. This grant provides 100% of the $594,000 for the design and construction of the CBE Connector Road. The Phase 1 Engineering Design study for this Connector Road effort was awarded to the JACOBS engineering firm in March 2009 and, following necessary coordination, the authority to proceed was given in August. The preliminary engineering report was provided to the Village project manager on December 28th, 2009, and is under review by the various parties.

As an independent, non-profit corporation, Community Resources has worked collaboratively with Village officials to provide a flexible structure for accomplishing a range of projects vital to maintaining and enhancing the economic viability of the Village of Yellow Springs and surrounding Miami Township. Moreover, CR stands ready to complete the terms of its agreement with the Village to market the properties for economic development purposes and to work with the Village to define available incentives, if any.