Developer May Purchase Lakewood Board Of Education Buildings

LAKEWOOD, OH — The Liberty Development Company may purchase the Lakewood Board of Education buildings at 1456 and 1470 Warren Road. The Board of Education introduced a proposed contract with Liberty during the Jan. 22 meeting. A vote on the contract will be held Feb. 5.

The contract says Liberty will pay $500,000 for the properties. The company will also invest $8 million in renovations at the properties. The money would be placed into a capital improvement fund, the school district said.

“The proposed contract allows us to remain in downtown Lakewood in renovated office space without going to voters for funding,” said Superintendent Jeff Patterson in a statement. Patterson added that the Board's administrative operations would be cut drastically, going from 30,000 square feet to 10,000 square feet, with the goal of cutting operating costs.

The historical facade of the East Rockport Central School building, at 1456 Warren, will be preserved, according to the details of the contract. However, that property will be turned into a "modern office space" the district said. The board would need to leave that facility by June 2018. District employees could remain at the 1470 Warren building until August 2019.

When work is completed at 1456 Warren, the Board will have the option to lease that space for central office operations, the district said. The 1470 property will likely become a tax-paying space, but its unclear what exactly the facility will be used for.

"This deal accomplishes our goal of putting some of our property back into the tax base," Board President Edward Favre said.

Photos from Lakewood Schools