MOUNT VERNON — The Knox County Land Bank is negotiating a deal to accept donation of the former Wine Stein restaurant.
According to the county auditor’s website, PIE ME LLC bought the building in May 2022 for $165,000 from Knox County Properties.
Knox County Properties bought it in September 2005 from the Dan Emmett House Hotel for $546,000.
The former restaurant at 156 Howard St. closed in 2005.
Two lots consisting of three parcels are available in Danville.
One is a buildable lot, 2 Walnut St., on the corner of Market and Walnut streets. The other is 608 Richards St.
In other real estate transactions, the Land Bank:
•Is accepting applications for 104 E. High St.
•Voted to turn a section of Coshocton Avenue in front of Urgent Care over to the city (parcel number 66-09684.000). A resolution to accept the property is on Mount Vernon City Council’s Nov. 24 agenda.
•Sold 301 Kimberly Ave. for $39,000 to Larry Miller, who installed a new roof and is renovating the house.
•Accepted an application from Lashley Fitness for a North Adams Street lot.
•Sold 501 W. Chestnut St. to the Knox County Board of Commissioners for its new transit hub (cash outlay $740,000 plus deeds to 601 W. Chestnut St., 7 Norton St., and 501 W. High St. ).
•Sold Plant 1 in Heartland Commerce Park to Becker Mining for $2.5 million.
Home buyers opting out of garages in Welcome Home Ohio project
Part of the Welcome Home Ohio grant included $30,000 for garages with homes Habitat for Humanity of Knox County and a local contractor are building in South Vernon.
However, many of the home buyers do not want garages for a variety of reasons.
“One, they want to get in their house today. They don’t’ want to have to wait for a garage to get built,” Land Bank President Sam Filkins said.
“For some of them, it’s the where the house was located on the lot. Construction was not done with the thought of putting in a garage, so they would lose their backyard in favor of the garage, and that’s not a good return on investment.
“It’s kind of on an individual decision basis because different property owners want different things,” he continued. “We have been better about designing where those houses are, but there’s only two houses that haven’t been started. So we’re a little late to be doing that.”
The houses on Madison and Monroe have gravel-like pull-out parking. Those on Columbus Street would utilize street parking.
Because the money for the garages is for renovation, not construction, the land bank cannot use it to build another house.
Filkins said $30,000 is typically not enough to make the houses the land bank acquires sellable.
One suggestion is to use the money for backyard fencing to hide items that might normally go inside a garage. Another is to install sidewalks and curbs to remove the incentive for homeowners to park in their front yard.
Filkins and Habitat director Terry Shultz have identified 17 potential sites for the next round of funding. Some are in Mount Vernon, others are in the villages.
16 and 18 E. Vine St., 103 S. Gay
Mount Vernon Nazarene University is holding one class in the lower level of the former Mount Vernon News building (16 E. Vine St.). The university will fully utilize the space starting in January.
Crews are redoing the ramp into Founders Food Hall because it is not ADA accessible.
“I don’t know who’s paying for it, but it’s not going to be the bank,” Filkins said.
Founders Food Hall (18 E. Vine St.) is progressing well. Crews installed the lights and will soon install casework, kitchen equipment, and countertops.
Filkins anticipates bringing vetted vendor applications to the board in December.
The board is exploring the idea of offering seven kitchens and turning the eighth into duckpin bowling. Duckpin bowling requires 16-foot-long lanes; a kitchen is roughly 35 feet long.
Filkins said the income from two duckpin bowling lanes is equal to or greater than what a kitchen would produce. It would also offer patrons an entertainment experience along with dining options.
The land bank would receive a percentage of sales.
“It doesn’t cost us any more money to do, so we’re looking through that,” Filkins said.
Construction is progressing quickly on the office suite (103 S. Gay St.). Crews will start installing drywall next week.
Heartland Commerce Park
The Cooper Park Development Company officially dissolved on Nov. 13. CPDC oversaw operations at Heartland Commerce Park and reported to the land bank.
The land bank has acquired CPDC’s assets and expenses.
Filkins commended the CPDC board members for their behind-the-scenes efforts.
“They thought they were having it for one year; they put in about six years of their life to make [the complex] happen,” Filkins said.
“The land bank taking that project on and then CPDC leading the course, that site went from vacant and probably falling apart to less than 10 years later it’ll be fully up and running and operational. That’s a huge win. In a lot of communities, those things sit for 25, 30, 40, 50 years.”
Wade and Gatton Nursery is planting approximately 180 trees in the common areas.
Board considers locking in rates in its investment account
The land bank’s investment account sits at $3.8 million.
That includes a $2 million deposit from the sale of Plant 1 in Heartland Commerce Park to Becker Mining, and $1.79 million in withdrawals to buy several Columbus Road houses from Habitat.
Seventy-nine percent is in a money market fund. The money market earns roughly $10,000 in interest each month.
The remaining 21 percent is in treasury bonds, which come due in December, March, and April.
Investment advisor Todd Hawkins of Park National Bank recommended buying more treasury bonds and locking in rates.
“I think it’s no secret that rates are trending downward, but at the same time we want to remain liquid in case you need funds,” Hawkins said.
Current interest rates are 3.85 percent. Hawkins expects the Federal Reserve to lower rates a couple of times in 2026 to around 3.6 to 3.7 percent.
“As you all figure out how much liquidity you need, it might not be a bad time to start locking in some of these rates, whether it’s 12 months, two years, or three years to get something locked in as rates drop,” he said.
“As the interest rate cycle changes, some of them might mature, and hopefully we’ll be able to reinvest at higher rates.”
Hawkins recommended several bonds, spaced six months apart, to ensure continuous access to the funds.
Filkins said that once the land bank completes funding for 18 E. Vine St., costs should stabilize. He estimates revenue of around $6 million from the Welcome Home Ohio program for the houses on Columbus Road, as well as brownfield and demolition reimbursement.
He will present a list of outstanding contracts to the board at its December meeting.