State brownfield grant will be used to demolish former school building in Galion

GALION — A $778,000 Brownfield Remediation Program grant from the Ohio Department of Development will pay for demolition of a former school building in Galion.

The grant, which will be used to demolish the former Galion East School, 127 E. North St., was awarded to the Crawford County Land Reutilization Corporation, also known as the Crawford County Land Bank, and announced in late July. The Land Bank will partner with the Carter family, which owns the property, and engineering firm Burgess & Niple to demolish the former school, which closed in 1980.

"We just weren't sure how else the City of Galion was ever going to get that kind of money, to take down something that needs to come down," said Barb McCullough, who has been the Land Bank's manager since its creation in 2015.

The Land Bank considered seeking the grant money for several projects around the county, but this one stood out because of the cost of remediation and demolition and the facts its owners were willing to work with the land bank, she said.

"And definitely a safety hazard," added Cindy Edwards, Crawford County treasurer and chairman the land bank's board of directors.

The property is considered a brownfield site, which means it has some sort of contamination - in this case, asbestos - that requires special cleanup and demolition, McCullough explained.

Asbestos is common in older structures — it was used in siding, flooring, window glazing and insulation — and isn't considered a problem until the material is disrupted and particles become airborne, she said. It wasn't until the deterioration of the building that the asbestos became a problem.

"It's in a lot of places, and as it sits, it's not an issue," she said. "But when it is interfered with, then it becomes airborne, and then it becomes an issue."

Remediation became cost-prohibitive

McCullough said she believes the property was purchased at a sheriff's sale, to be used for storage. But the building was already too far gone.

"Water has fallen through the roof, through the asbestos and gathered in the basement, and so it became cost-prohibitive for the remediation of this asbestos for her personally," she said, referring to the Carters.

In a news release from the land bank, Annie Carter, owner of Carter Machine and a representative of the Carter family, said she was pleased with the announcement:

“We are extremely grateful to the Ohio Department of Development, the Crawford County Land Bank, Burgess & Niple, and the Crawford Partnership," Carter said. "Removing this building has been a long-term project. The improvement of the appearance in the area will be appreciated, and hopefully, a new entity will be developed for the good of the community.”

The end use of the property has not yet been determined, according to the land bank news release.

The Land Bank hopes to be ready to seek bids for the project in the next month or so, McCullough said, with the goal of starting work in late fall, probably November.

"It depends on the availability of contractors, because with all of the counties being awarded money, the contractors are busy," she said.

The Land Bank also received a $352,250 building demolition and site revitalization program grant for the Norton Bicentennial Park project in Bucyrus, which was announced earlier.

ggoble@gannett.com

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