Schools

Kent State to Pay $4.25 Million to Lease Vacant Book Store

Final lease agreement inked between university and Portage Port Authority for 3.75 acres

The final agreement between Kent State University and the Portage Port Authority shows Kent State will pay $4.25 million to lease the former DuBois Book Store property on South Lincoln Street.

In December, Kent State's trustees voted to agree to lease the 3.75 acres from the port authority, an economic development body comprised of members appointed by the Portage County Commissioners.

The exact total, $4,254,902, includes $4,165,502.98 for principal and interest, $89,400 for the annual administrative fee and a $3.7 million security deposit.

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"The security deposit money will come back to the university," Kent State spokesperson Emily Vincent said.

The book store closed in the summer of 2011. Howard DuBois, whose family founded the store in 1936, agreed to sell the 16 parcels to the port authority.

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The Portage Port Authority voted Dec. 4, 2012, to issue "development revenue” bonds to buy the property, according to the lease agreement.

Kent State President Lester Lefton said previously that immediate plans for the property are to use it as a construction staging area for the new College of Architecture and Environmental Design, which will stand on the new Esplanade extension into downtown.

Kent State has the ability to use the property "in furtherance of its educational and governmental purposes," according to the lease agreement with the port authority.

At the end of the 15-year lease, the university would have the option to buy the land outright from the port authority for a nominal amount, such as $1, or sell its option to a private developer or other entity, Gregg Floyd, vice president for finance and administration at Kent State, said previously.

"What it ultimately might be used for we’re not exactly sure, but given it’s proximity to campus and some of our key academic buildings we don’t want a Wal-Mart to spring up there," Lefton said. "It wouldn’t be consistent with the aesthetic of campus or the Esplanade. This gives us some control."


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