Land bank details progress with grant projects, other properties

Members of the Highland County Land Reutilization Corporation kicked off the 2026 calendar year with a meeting Thursday, Jan. 15, where board members and administrators discussed projects in the two state grant program as well as the sale and acquisition of other properties.

Land bank administrator Jason Johansen said the state has not yet approved their application for 13 projects using the $131,140.30 in leftover funding from the 2024-25 Building Demolition & Site Revitalization Program. That list of applicants includes five properties in Liberty Township, four in Paint, three in Fairfield and one in Whiteoak.

“If these projects go over budget, we will move a project or two, or however many we need to, over to the fiscal year ’26 demolition program,” Johansen said. 

For that 2026 grant cycle, the current list includes eight projects, including three each in Paint and Liberty Townships and one each in Fairfield and Whiteoak, with a ninth potential project in Hamer Township that is currently in court.

“Additional projects can still be added until April 30, and those projects will more than likely need to have an extension approved by ODOD, because we need to get an asbestos inspection, possible abatement and then the demolition complete by June 30,” Johansen said. “If ODOD is allowing projects to be added till April 30, I would say that they are expecting extensions, because usually the process is anywhere from five to six months, I’d say, for a demolition.”

In a related discussion, after an explanation by Johansen, the board moved to view two adjoining parcels in Greenfield as separate parcels for purposes of percentage matches for grant funding in the event they are submitted to the BDSR program.

According to Johansen, the Village of Greenfield has contacted the land bank regarding 133 and 137 South Washington Street, both of which are part of the former Elliott Hotel property. As previously reported, after five months of correspondence between the village and land bank in 2022, the parties reached a cost-sharing agreement in January 2023 for the building demolition. 

Johansen said that the village currently owns 137 South Washington and is “attempting to purchase” the adjacent parcel at 133 South Washington, which is currently privately owned, for continued demolition efforts.

“[For the 137 parcel], the renovation costs are unaffordable and upwards of a half million dollars or more, and it can't be demolished without a very expensive, roughly $100,000 or more wall being put up,” Johansen said. “If they do get ownership of 133 South Washington, which they're in talks with that owner, they can have them demolished at the same time.”

If that does not occur, Johansen added that he does not “think the land bank should take on the liability” of assisting with the demolition of the 137 parcel due to the “possible structural damage to the other” parcel, unless the 133 parcel owner signs off on it.

However, if the village is able to acquire their neighboring parcel, Johansen asked what type of financial commitment the village would be looking at — whether it was a $2,500 total or $2,500 per structure.

“I would say it's going to be a pretty expensive demolition, anywhere from probably 50 [thousand dollars to maybe $100,000,” Johansen said.

Board member David Daniels said that since it is “two different parcels, two different buildings with different ownership on each one,” he moved to “view them as separate parcels.”

The board also approved a motion to award the apparent low bidder, IIS (Industrial Insulation Specialists), a bid totaling $3,395 for asbestos abatement on 21 South Fairfield St. in Leesburg and 226 South High St., 237 East Lilly Ave. and 6539 Spring Hill Drive in Hillsboro for upcoming BDSR projects.

For an update on Brownfield Remediation Grant projects, Johansen said that all four 2024-25 projects — the East Monroe “tank farm,” a former machine shop in Greenfield, a former gas station in Hillsboro and the former Rocky Fork Truck Stop in Rainsboro — “are all complete,” minus final reimbursements from the state. The former Hillsboro gas station is the only one of those projects that will see continued work through the 2026 iteration of the brownfield grant program.

Environmental consultant Matt Wagner of TetraTech provided details on ongoing work at the Rocky Fork Truck Stop, which was included in the past two brownfield grant cycles and has a current deadline of June 30 following extensions from the state. According to Johansen, a “90-day hold period” has concluded, and Wagner said TetraTech is awaiting results of their well test sampling to see if it is in compliance with the state. 

“I anticipate that we'll have those analytical results next week, and we'll provide an update to the board as it relates to where we're at and future next steps,” Wagner said. 

For the 2026 Brownfield Remediation Grant program, the board voted to approve a request from the City of Hillsboro to withdraw their application for the former Bell’s Foundry property on West Main Street. Johansen said that Lauren Walker, who is also the city’s representative on the land bank board, notified him “that the Hillsboro CIC [Community Improvement Corporation] board has decided to withdraw their involvement in the Brownfield Remediation Program so they can pursue funding through Ohio EPA’s DERR [Division of Environmental Response and Revitalization] program. 

“The Ohio EPA has approached them and is willing to fully fund their project,” Johansen said. “She wanted to thank everyone involved in the time and effort that went into reviewing and assisting in our application, and they truly appreciate it.”

Wagner said removing the project from the Brownfield program “frees up roughly $400,000 for this board to look at other projects within the county for the best interest of the land bank,” including possibly helping with the aforementioned South Washington Street demolitions in Greenfield. 

The other projects submitted for 2026 brownfield funding, aside from the former Hillsboro gas station, include former gas station sites in Marshall, Greenfield and Belfast.

For a separate grant for brownfield assessment work — this one through the U.S. EPA — the board signed off on being “included in that coalition” with the Ohio Valley Regional Development Commission and Atlas Technical Consultants to apply for a to-be-determined project.

In other discussion:

• Johansen gave updates on several properties for sale or donation, including one for which they had previously taken a “wait and see” approach based on progress on the sale of a similar lot in Greenfield.

The land bank had listed a property they own at 222 McClain Avenue in Greenfield for $20,000 with little interest. The Village of Greenfield had a similar vacant parcel that failed to receive any bids with a minimum listing price of $12,750, nor with a $8,925 minimum., Johansen said. 

Johansen told the board he has now received a $3,000 offer for the 222 McClain Avenue parcel from a private buyer, while he also “discussed the possibility of doing a live public auction” with the Village of Greenfield for both of the McClain Avenue parcels and other Greenfield properties.

“Right now, we have set roughly $730 in legal fees through the donation and $350 in mowing costs over the last two summers,” Johansen said. “The demolition was grant-funded. That was $8,400, and we cleared roughly $10,000 in delinquent taxes with that.”

In response to a question from board president Terry Britton on whether they would have to put the parcel up for bid, legal counsel Todd Book advised that they “can engage an auctioneer, a real estate broker” or other “different options.”

Daniels said he was not opposed to “dropping our asking price, but I don’t know that I want to go down to $3,000,” given the amount of money put into the property.

“Let's consider an asking price of $10,000,” Daniels said. “If we don't end up with a bidder at that, then I think I wouldn’t mind trying going to public auction.”

Johansen pointed out that if they “lower it and wait, we might miss that opportunity to go that route” in conjunction with the village. However, Daniels said “by doing it this way, we might have given ourselves an opportunity in Greenfield, an opportunity to decide what they want to do, and then maybe we can better coordinate our efforts again 30 days from now.” The board voted in favor of Daniels’ motion to lower the asking price to $10,000.

• Johansen reported that the land bank is continuing to make progress in requiring a property at 7931 Main Street in Highland, as the land bank has paid sewer costs and the village agreed to release other special assessments on the property. The land bank is now awaiting documentation on a $186,000 mortgage release from the bank that held the mortgage. 

“Once those two things are done, we have everything back from the property owner as it relates to the donation, and the property is in our demolition program,” Johansen said. “It’s a nice corner a lot there in the Village of Highland. That's moving along, a little slower than I would like, but we're getting there.”

• A property on Bigelow Street (with no street number) in Hillsboro was sold through a side lot offer to a neighbor for $500, plus reimbursement for $85 in recording and conveyance fees, according to Johansen said. The property had been forfeited to the state of Ohio, and the land bank then acquired it through a forfeited lands list, Johansen said. 

• The meeting began with the annual reorganization, where City of Hillsboro representative Walker and Paint Township representative Randy Mustard — neither of whom were in attendance — were reappointed. Britton was reelected president, while a motion to appoint the vice president was tabled until the other board members could talk to Walker and Mustard about who wants to serve in that role for 2026.

• Book reported that he is “in the process” of working on the purchase of tax lien certificates for seven different parcels, including three on Taylor Street in Greenfield; three on U.S. 62 in Samantha; and one on Highland Hills Drive in the Rocky Fork Lake area. Although Book said nothing has been filed with the court yet, board member and county treasurer Vickie Warnock said letters have gone out to property owners.

In response to a question from Daniels, Warnock said “about 94 letters” have been issued thus far for the county’s contact with NAR Ohio, Inc “to acquire, manage and collect amounts related to municipal tax liens and delinquent property taxes.

“We have received the funds for the taxes those have been applied to the parcels, and we have sent the letters out to those customers, with the information for NAR, stating that NAR has put a tax lien on their property and that they will be having to contact NAR to make a payment contract with them,” Warnock said. 

Warnock said that after the letters were issued, the treasurer’s office received close to $150,000 “in that month time span,” then received “over $500,000 from NAR to pay those property taxes.” 

• The board approved the December financial report as presented by Johansen. The land bank had a beginning balance of $348,671.68 and ending balance of $301,314.61, although counting uncashed checks and expected reimbursements, Johansen said the forecasted ending balance is $415,770.08.

Also approved in a separate motion was the payment of unpaid bills totaling $32,456.64, which included legal fees; Johansen’s salary and expenses; 2026 membership in the Ohio Land Bank Association; multiple bills totaling $7,870 from Rainbow Home Environmental Services for 21 asbestos inspections, which will be covered under state grant funding; a bill from Tetra Tech for work at the Rocky Fork Truck Stop; and postage stamps.

• The board approved a renewal of their annual consulting agreement with their attorney Book (By the Book Advisors, LLC), which Johansen said was a continuation at the same rate. The agreement is for services not to exceed $4,000 per month, including a $325 hourly rate for consulting services and $40 hourly rate for travel expenses.

• The board approved a motion to approve Millhuff-Stang to conduct the 2025 independent financial review of the land bank, at a price not to exceed $3,100.

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