Kettering City Council approves selling two former fire station properties

On August 10, 2021, the Kettering Ohio City Council unanimously approved selling two former fire station properties. Council allowed Kettering City Manager Mark Schwieterman to agree to sell the property at 4121 Shroyer Road and 3780 Tait Road.

4121 Shroyer Road:

Fire Station #35 located at 4121 Shroyer Road, Kettering, Ohio - Todd Elzey

Kettering sold the 4121 Shroyer Road property to Town & Country Shopping Center. The property was the site of former Fire Station #35. The parcel was on the backside of the Town and Country Shopping Center.

Schwieterman stated that the City originally bought the property from Town & Country Shopping Center in 1957. City records show that Kettering initially approved $113,000 for the purchase of the land and construction of station #35. Records do not show how much Kettering actually paid for the 4121 Shroyer Road property. Kettering built station #35 in 1959 for $70,000.

The City only used the Shroyer Road property as a fire station. The station was closed as part of the Kettering Fire Department’s (KFD) 2014 modernization program. KFD modernization program upgraded fire stations to:

1. permit storage and safety of modern fire and EMS equipment;
2. upgrade facilities for 24/7 station operations by male and female firefighters; and
3. comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990.
Residents can learn more about the modernization project at https://www.ketteringoh.org/new-fire-stations/.

Town & Country Shopping Center paid Kettering $21,250 to buy 4121 Shroyer Road. Town & Country also paid Kettering $3,500 to remove an antenna on the fire station building. The shopping center agreed to demolish the fire station buildings within a year of the sale closing. The shopping center also agreed to redevelop the property.

The City sold 4121 Shroyer Road to promote jobs and economic development. Schwieterman said, “The City has an excellent relationship with Town and Country…” The City felt the shopping center would redevelop the property in a way that would benefit residents. However, Kettering did not receive any assurances about how Town & Country Shopping Center would use the property.

Town & Country Asset Manager & Broker Kelly Casto said that ownership was excited to repurchase the Shroyer Road property. Casto also stated, “Now that the property transfer is complete, we can really dive into development plans…” Casto did not give any specific planned use for the 4121 Shroyer Road property. Casto also said that the shopping center would demolish the old fire station buildings as soon as weather permitted in the Spring of 2022.

Montgomery County Auditor valued Town & Country’s property at $236,110.58. In 2020, the shopping center paid $19,980.03 in property taxes. Once the City reintegrates the 4121 Shroyer Road property into Town & Country’s property, the shopping center’s property taxes may increase.

3780 Tait Road:

Fire Station #37 located at 3780 Tait Road, Kettering, Ohio - Todd Elzey

Kettering also sold a parcel of land at 3780 Tait Road to Kettering Health.

At the council meeting, Schwieterman told residents that 3780 Tait Road was not Tait Park. Rather, the property was formerly Fire Station #37. KFD built Fire Station #37 in 1970. The station was also closed as part of the KFD modernization project. Kettering could not find a record of how much it cost to build Fire Station #37.

The 8.28 acres of land sold to Kettering Health included far more than just the station #37 building and grounds. It included 7.38 acres of the wooded hillside behind Tait Park and Fire Station #37. The parcel also included the 0.90 acres site of station #37.

Parcel map of 3780 Tait Road courtesy of the City of Kettering, Ohio

The 0.90-acre site of station #37 included the tennis courts located inside Tait Park. However, the sales contract required Kettering Health to lease back the tennis courts at $1.00 per year while the City moved the tennis courts to a new area in Tait Park.

The City initially bought the Tait Road property in the 1960s. The 8.28 acres being sold was part of a larger 14.78 parcel of land bought from C.W. Deeds. C.W. Deeds was the son of Col. Edward Deeds. Kettering paid about $90,000 for the 14.78 acres of land. Kettering Health paid the City of Kettering $285,000 for the 8.28 acres of land. Kettering sold the property to promote economic development, job growth, and property redevelopment.

Schwieterman said that the city does not know how Kettering Health would use the property. Schwieterman also said that any use would have to comply with current zoning rules. Kettering Health could also ask to rezone the property through the public rezoning process. Kettering Health did not respond to requests for comment on how they would use the property.

Kettering Health had 90 days from closing the sale to perform a soil sample of the property. Schwieterman did not think there would be any soil contamination issues.