$1.6 Million Weatherwax Deal

I've thought from the beginning that Adkins is not moving here.  At most he would rent a cheap apartment and claim he is a resident.

Dougie's current home is <***GASP***> VINYL SIDING!!!

lol--tough bunch here
I would be wary if moving here for the first time
while a very nice home can be found for low $$, job security and quality of life are huge factors
then throw in a reasonably large family and it becomes a very important decision
he didn't cause the majority of our mess, and gets a chance to fix it
time will tell....

Although Mr A didn't create all of the problems, he did make a choice to move here with his family and is being paid well to do just that. There are plenty of nice neighborhoods where he can purchase a home. Now that he is a Middletown Boy, it would only be proper to send his children to Middletown City Schools. I believe if you work for a city you should live in that city and send your children to their city schools and that should go for ALL city employees, not just the city manager.

He'll but Bill Akers Sr house on Rosedale.

He'll send his kids to Fenwick.

He'll watch Middletown continue its decline, while hiring mothpieces, pr interns, ED staff, to tell others how Middletown was in the past, but turning the corner. In other words, same story the past 30 years.

When is the HUD announcement coming by the way, the press release delayed for months.  

spiderjohn wrote: if YOU were moving here now with a large family and had Mr.A's income range, where would YOU locate, and how much would YOU spend? Where would you send your children to school? just wondering, since we are all pretty familiar with the community--fair ??

Look north and east.....Oaks, Manchester Manor, DiVinci Dr. Areas around Thorn Hill, Rosedale from Milton out to Breiel are nice, older neighborhoods. Dorset, Eaton Dr. McGee- very nice older homes. As swohio mentions, the old hospital area has great appeal. Sadly, as time goes by, the neighborhoods around Euclid and Kensington, once very nice, have lost a step or two in prestige. Like stacked dominos, the neighborhoods starting south and west and heading north and east are falling.

Kids go to Fenwick or Monroe schools if possible. Middletown public is not a choice if quality is important. Too many indicators as to a poor to mediocre education to be had here. Not at all like it use to be.

Not sure if this was posted yet or not, but just ran across the listing for Weatherwax up for sale.  $2,250,000

From MJ:
Weatherwax to remain golf course in 2015

Middletown golf pro Jim Kraft signs one-year lease with property owner


MIDDLETOWN —
Weatherwax Golf Course will remain a golf course — at least for another year — after a local golf professional finalized a deal Thursday with the landowner to lease the property through November 2015.

Jim Kraft, of WMVH LLC, signed a one-year lease with Myron Bowling Auctioneers, Inc., to keep Weatherwax open as a golf course. Both parties declined to disclosed the value of the lease agreement, but confirmed that it goes into effect Nov. 3 and runs through Nov. 1, 2015.

Myron Bowling, a Hamilton auctioneer who bought the 36-hole golf course from the city of Middletown for $1.6 million, said Kraft has an option to continue to lease the property “for as many years as he’d like to after that.”

“Everybody wants a golf course, and now it’s a golf course again,” Bowling said in a phone interview with the Journal-News. “If you want it to stay a golf course, then go golf.”

Some residents and local golfers worried that Weatherwax might be leased or sold for some other use. When Bowling closed the deal with the city last month for Weatherwax, he indicated there was a “50-50 possibility” that it could re-open as a golf course next year.

In fact, an auction for the property, equipment and other items was scheduled for Nov. 15, but after the deal with Kraft, the event has been canceled, Bowling said. He said nothing, including golf carts and other equipment, belonging to the golf course has been sold.

Bowling confirmed there were parties other than Kraft interested in Weatherwax, and at least one person had a use other than a golf course in mind for the land located in Madison Twp.

“But that didn’t come to fruition,” Bowling said. “We were on a timeline, and he (Kraft) had a ready offer so we kept it a golf course.”

Kraft, 57, of Middletown, has 28 years of experience in the golf industry, which includes having been a golf pro at Pleasant Hill Golf Club since 1988. He said his motivation for leasing Weatherwax is simple.

“I didn’t want to see it close, and I thought it was a good business opportunity,” said Kraft, who plays Weatherwax about twice a week during the golf season. “When I saw the auction sign up at Weatherwax I asked them in they were entertaining anyone on leasing the golf course, and they said yes.”

Kraft said the deal took about three weeks to negotiate after he first approached Bowling about the lease. He said his next steps will be to familiarize himself with the grounds and course operations.

Kraft said he plans to keep just about everything the same at Weatherwax, but hasn’t made any final decisions about staffing yet. Dave Tieman, the longtime golf professional at Weatherwax, will work his last day there on Nov. 2.

“It’s going to be a privilege to serve our customers and the Middletown area,” said his brother David Kraft. “We are really looking forward to it.”

City Manager Doug Adkins said Thursday any plan that keeps the golf course open and available to the public is great for the citizens of Middletown.

“I hope the course remains open for years to come and wish any operator good luck in their endeavor,” Adkins said in an email to the Journal-News.

Dean wrote: Lets go play golf and keep it open?