WILMINGTON — County commissioners voted Wednesday to sell about five acres of county-owned property located within the Wilmington Air Park to Great Oaks.
The real estate is next to the Laurel Oaks Career Campus site in Wilmington. The purchase price is $85,000.
Laurel Oaks is undergoing a $35 million construction and renovation project. The newly acquired land will be part of the Laurel Oaks’ parking lot and entrance area to the new addition and remodeled school, said Jon Weidlich, director of community relations for Great Oaks.
The parking lot is being relocated from where it currently is to the other side of the school, he said. The purchased tract of land originally was part of the Laurel Oaks campus, he said, before the real estate was transferred to the county.
The property includes a building currently inhabited by the Southern Ohio Learning Center. The learning center’s students and staff will move to the Southern Ohio Educational Service Center (ESC) building in Wilmington.
The learning center is under the umbrella of the Wilmington-based Southern Ohio ESC, which provides educational support services to a dozen school districts in Adams, Clinton, Fayette and Highland Counties.
Clinton County Commissioners President Kerry R. Steed described the real estate that was sold as excess property the county owned at the air park. Commissioners came to the agreement to sell the property to Great Oaks Career Campuses so it could continue its expansion into that area and utilize it, he said.
Though Great Oaks is the purchaser of the five acres, a small portion of the real estate will be split off for potential use of the Clinton County Port Authority which owns the air park, Steed said.
The Southern Ohio Learning Center serves students with unique learning needs. It was created for students with disabilities who have an identified need for behavior support and wrap-around services from mental health providers, according to Wilmington City Schools Director of Pupil Services Natalie Harmeling in a 2018 interview.
While they’re at the learning center, these students receive academics, as well as mental health services. The learning center serves students from multiple school districts.
Reach Gary Huffenberger at 937-556-5768.
