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Tue. Sep 10th, 2024

Dublin schools have stopped the project which could have saved taxpayers millions

Dublin schools have stopped the project which could have saved taxpayers millions

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Dublin City Schools and Cardinal Health believed that selling an empty office building could be mutually beneficial for both organizations and taxpayers.

But that effort now seems dead.

Cardinal Health planned to sell a vacant building to the school district, which needs more classrooms for the 2,000 additional high school students expected over the next decade. They argued that local taxpayers would have benefited the most because revenue from the tax that voters narrowly approved last fall would have covered the building’s purchase.

The project hit a major roadblock at Dublin’s Planning and Zoning Commission last week when all four commissioners present at an informal review said they would not support rezoning the parcel.

After negative feedback from commissioners, the school district is putting the project on “pause.”

“It would be irresponsible for the district to continue to invest in the Cardinal Health West building review given the feedback we have received,” Dr. John Marschhausen said in a news release Wednesday.

He added that the zoning and code changes are “critical” to turning the building into educational space.

“Right now, the time, collaboration and financial commitment required to implement these changes outweighs the potential benefits,” Marschhausen said.

The rezoning of the plot, which is now in a corporate office area, was a vital step in using the 247,000 square foot building for education. Cardinal Health also planned to leave behind furniture and technology in the three-story building, and it would have been almost “turnkey” for the school district, Marschhausen told the commission last week.

Buying the building from Cardinal Health would have cost $37 million, but building a brand new high school could cost more than $200 million, he said.

Commissioners remained steadfast in their opposition to the project even after a Cardinal Health executive told them the buildings would likely remain empty and generate no revenue for the city in the foreseeable future.

Marschhausen said in the release that if the Cardinal Health project is not viable, the school district will look at other “short-term and long-term solutions” to accommodate a growing student population.

“We respect the city’s process and deeply value our ongoing partnership with Dublin City. We heard and considered the perspectives of the city administration and the planning and zoning committee,” Marschhausen said.

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