MANSFIELD — The Richland County Land Bank will hear a proposal Wednesday to build 14 affordable housing units at 455 Park Ave. West.
The land bank owns the property, once home to the old Mansfield YMCA.
Joseph Recchie of Community Building Partners will present his vision for a new development consisting of six townhouses and eight ranches. The townhouses would face Park Avenue West.
Recchie previously gave a presentation to the land bank board in August, when he requested the land bank’s partnership in applying for Welcome Home Ohio dollars.
Welcome Home Ohio is a state-funded competitive grant program aimed at boosting the state’s owner-occupied housing stock. The program is administered by the Ohio Department of Development.
Applications are due by Jan. 16. More than $22 million is up for grabs. The funds can be used to build new units, purchase residential property or rehabilitate existing housing.
Entities like the land bank can apply for up to $100,000 in funds per housing unit.
The land bank voted in August to approve a memorandum of understanding with Recchie, but the parties did not have an exact plan for which land bank lots the developer would build on.
Executive director Amy Hamrick said ODOD doesn’t require applicants to specify where they will build new, affordable housing — but she thinks providing that information will make the land bank’s application stronger.
Nevertheless, she wants the land bank board to discuss the matter first.
“I really like it. I think it’s sharp,” Hamrick said of Recchie’s proposal. “I’m curious to see what all the board members think.”
“It’s the Y and that’s a special site,” she added.
Land bank will hear proposals from three affordable housing developers
Finding a new use for the old YMCA site has been an uphill battle since the old building was razed six years ago.
The city of Mansfield used funds from its PRIDE tax to pay for the $500,000 demolition, which began at the tail end of 2018 and stretched into the spring.
Then-Mayor Tim Theaker’s administration contracted with Page Excavating of Lucas to tear down the building, which the YMCA vacated when it opened its new facility on Scholl Road.
The plan was to demolish the building and then assess the cost of demolition to the owner through the Richland County auditor’s office, who would eventually foreclose on the property. That is how the land bank eventually acquired it.
The land bank tried to find developers for the property, but Hamrick said there was a lack of interest due to hard fill that was improperly buried onsite.
“Once we tell them everything is buried, they quickly lose interest,” Hamrick told Richland Source in February 2024.
The city and land bank later worked together to cover the cost of re-excavating the site, which cost more than $1 million. The city filed a suit against Page Excavating in the fall of 2024, alleging breach of contract.
A jury trial has been set for March.
Meanwhile, the land bank put out a request for proposals in May after the re-excavation was complete. Hamrick said Recchie was the only one to submit a proposal.
Recchie’s proposal for the property includes three-story townhouses. Each townhouse would be 2,108 square feet and include two bedrooms, according to plans included in the land bank’s agenda packet.
The ranch homes would have three bedrooms and two baths. All units would have their own garage.
Recchie’s August proposal said he has partnered with Unibilt, a modular home fabricator based in Vandalia, Ohio, on previous Welcome Home Ohio projects.
The land bank will discuss Recchie’s proposal, as well as two other proposals for Welcome Home funds, at its meeting Wednesday.
MFD Development Group will present its proposal to partner with the land bank to build between 18 and 22 stand-alone housing units.
Demeter’s Developments will present its proposal to partner with the land bank and build two attached townhomes, with a priority on housing individuals with disabilities.
The meeting will begin at 1 p.m. at the Richland County Regional Planning Commission’s offices, located at 19 N. Main Street.
