Tom Loftis, president of the Nextedge board of directors, said he was surprised the land sold for so much.
“I’m glad it sold, that will reduce the loss to the bank,” he said. Nextedge returned the deed of the property to Fifth Third Bank over the summer after the Turner Foundation pulled out all financial backing of the property due to a lack of development projects. Turner Foundation officials did not return calls for comment.
But the fact that the property sold for as much as it did is a sign of hope.
“The confidence of this buyer shows that Nextedge is still a viable opportunity for development and can still bring jobs to the community,” said Mike McDorman, president and CEO of the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce.
Since the park is still zoned as a research and technology park, there is still a chance Springfield can attract more businesses such as Avetec, which currently resides in the park.
“It’s a very important niche,” McDorman said. “We experienced early successes but then we hit hard times ... (the purchase) speaks to the opportunity a tech park brings to our community at a time when people aren’t buying up land.”
The park had a year of decent development in 2007 and 2008, but once the recession hit, interest from developers dried up.
The buyer of the land has not been disclosed.
Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0371 or emason@coxohio.com.
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