TOLEDO, OH (Toledo News Now) - The Toledo Public School Board voted unanimously Monday to purchase the North Summit Street YMCA with plans to shift the district's administration closer to downtown.
At the start of the 2015 - 2016 school year the N. Summit YMCA building will be home to the new TPS headquarters. District leaders will move out of the old Thurgood Marshall Building into the former YMCA.
If grant funding is approved for the district, the building will also be home to the future site of their Head Start hub.
As part of the district-wide performance audit, a suggestion was made that the district move their headquarters out of the Thurgood Marshall Building to save money.
"We did a feasibility study to really decide what we really want to do with the board of education. At the same time, looking at the performance audit we needed to consolidate buildings. So, in regards, it allows us to operate efficiently and effectively," said TPS Superintendent Dr. Romules Durant.
The ideal location for TPS to move their headquarters was the N. Summit YMCA. Until Monday night, the YMCA had an agreement with the Horizon Science Academy to purchase the building for just under $900,000. But with TPS also wanting to use the location for their Head Start program if they are awarded the grant funding, the approval from the board of education to purchase the building means the YMCA will break their contract with horizon and TPS is new owner of the building.
"TPS is so important to the Y in terms of all the things that we do together. The visions that they have for that facility is one that will be really a positive thing for that community and us and Horizon didn't want to get in the way of that," said YMCA and JCC of Greater Toledo President and CEO Brad Toft.
As part of the purchase by TPS Horizon will be paid $72,000 as a reimbursement for costs incurred. TPS will pay $410,000 for the building. After terms and conditions set by the YMCA and agreed upon by TPS, the total net cost to the district is just under $777,000.
Members of the One Village Council are especially pleased with the change in owners. They openly supported TPS over Horizon to move into the building.
"It had nothing to do with Horizon, it was the community and what was best for the community. And the programs for the Head Start are what's best for this community," said One Village Council President Dawn Comstock.
