State is seeking appraisals on NGRH buildings
Bonds on the entire site of the former Northwest Georgia Regional Hospital remain an impediment to local control.
The State Properties Commission is having complete appraisals for the property and buildings at the old Northwest Georgia Regional Hospital property done to determine a fair market value for the property. Members of the Rome-Floyd County Development Authority learned Tuesday that the SPC has offered the community the same deal for local control of the Northwest Georgia Regional property that was given to authorities in Milledgeville and Baldwin County for the old Central State Hospital campus.
There is one significant difference. The state still has approximately $4.2 million in bonded indebtedness that ties up the entire property in West Rome. “Forgiving the debt doesn’t seem to be on the table,” said authority attorney Andy Davis.
There was no debt on much of the property at Central State in Milledgeville and that is the property that was deeded over to a sitespecific development authority for redevelopment of that site.
“Theirs was fair market value. They had some facilities that were zero or less in value,” Davis said. “They got some of that property for zero.”
“With ours, it’s kind of an all or none kind of thing,” said Chamber of Commerce Director of Business and Industry Services Ken Wright. “If we want somebody to come into the hospital to purchase, they would pretty much have to purchase the entire property.”
Wright did say the appraisals being sought by the SPC at Northwest Regional would be done on a building by building basis.
Wright said that his office is looking into grants that might be available to help Rome and Floyd County purchase the hospital property, some 132 acres. He is also trying to clarify with the Appalachian Regional Commission if the community can
even apply for grant redevelopment money for property it does not own.
Chamber leaders reported that Senator Chuck Hufstetler, R-Rome, was seeking to get Floyd County added to an omnibus piece of legislation that
would allow the state to dispose of state-owned real properties in certain counties across the state.
“We’re continuing to market it aggressively as recently as yesterday,” said Chamber President Al Hodge.
Chamber Economic Development Director Heather Seckman said, “I know people that want to move in there right now. It would be really great if we could get control of that, even if it was just one building, it would be wonderful.”