City approves plan to purchase former gas station

The city of Columbus is moving ahead with plans to purchase the former co-op gas station on Second Street at a price of up to $340,000.

The less than one-acre property is at the corner of Central Avenue, Second and State streets and has been abandoned for years. City officials say the building is deteriorating and has been the subject of vandalism over the years. When the store closed, products on the shelves were left to rot inside, says Heather Pope, redevelopment director for the city.

Pope said the property does have several fiberglass underground storage tanks and the city will be applying for grant funds to have those removed. Testing has shown no leaking from those tanks that would have to be cleaned up.

Mayor Jim Lienhoop said that two appraisals were done, showing a value of between $290,000 and $340,000, for an average of $317,000.

Redevelopment Commission member and City Councilwoman Laurie Booher asked why the city was willing to pay a price higher than the lower the appraisal. Lienhoop explained that the state has given redevelopment commissions that ability.

Lienhoop said that sometimes to complete a larger project, redevelopment commissions need the ability to pay the asking price for a property. But this project is within a few percentage points from the average., he said.

In this case, putting all of the property in the area under the ownership of the city, could make for an enticing package for a would-be developer, the mayor said. The area is a key location for future development.

The redevelopment commission voted to approve negotiations to buy the property, which is now owned by Rickers.