Rome lukewarm on NGRH site

With a 2017 purchase option looming, city commissioners are not eager to assume $5.8 million in debt to buy the property.

There appears to be no consensus on the Rome City Commission about the future of the former Northwest Georgia Regional Hospital property in West Rome.

The state-run mental hospital was closed in 2011. Since then, there have been conversations about its future, and Rome hired a consultant to come up with a development plan for the 132 acres off North Division Street.

The city has an option to buy the property through July 2017, said City Manager Sammy Rich. The price of the property would be assuming the $5.8 million debt it carries.

“It’s a very strategically located property,” Rich said. “It could serve a very vital role in the community.”

A development plan isn’t a sprint, but a marathon, he added.

The state could keep the property, Rich continued, but he wonders if the state has any agencies that would need it or use it.

City Commissioner Craig McDaniel said he doesn’t want to spend money purchasing the property, adding that the state should work to bring jobs here because Romans already paid for the property through state taxes.

City Commissioner Bill Collins said he isn’t in favor of purchasing the property either because the taxpayers don’t need an additional burden.

If the state keeps the property, it will, over time, pay down the debt.

“We’re in the best position we can be in with that debt reducing as time goes by,” Collins added.

Commissioner Sue Lee said she would be hesitant to purchase the property at the $5.8 million price because of the additional work needed to upgrade the property.

The Tunnell, Spangler and Walsh firm put together a study in 2015 that recommended a mixeduse development featuring technology-based manufacturing with a potential medical office, retail space and residential component as well.

TSW’s study called for the demolition of virtually all the old buildings on site.

Mayor Jamie Doss said he would prefer the city keep control of the property, because the state may develop

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So far, 89 percent of readers have responded Yes, 10 percent have voted No, and 1 percent have said they have No opinion. it piecemeal, bringing in tenants who may not be a good fit for Rome.

Commissioner Wendy Davis said she wishes the state would give Rome a better deal on the purchase, since it was the state’s decision to close the hospital.

“I don’t know where we would get that much money, but I think it is in our interest to control what happens there,” she said.

Commissioner Bill Irmscher said purchasing the property would depend on who is interested in developing it. He wishes an industry would step up to the plate and say they need acreage to move to Rome.

Commissioner Sundai Stevenson said she would like to study the issue more before she declares a position on the issue.