By 1831Galion
PART TWO
As noted before, during the monthly meeting of the Galion Port Authority Board on Wednesday, the idea was advanced by more than one person that the Board was rushing toward a predetermined end and, in the process, ignoring important considerations.
The discussion surrounding the fate of the former Peace Lutheran Church continued to reflect that concern.
The first post in our coverage can be read here.
Limited Outreach, Limited Options
When the viability of preserving the sanctuary while removing the bell tower was raised, two Board members noted their belief that the property had drawn minimal interest during the six months it was offered for sale or redevelopment.
It was not shared, however, that during that period Executive Director Mark Rantala failed to reach out to statewide entities that market and repurpose such properties. Instead, efforts were largely confined to erecting a “redevelopment potential” sign—still standing on the church lawn. If someone happened to be in Galion and driving down South Market Street, they might then be alerted to the opportunity.
Originally, the church was transferred to the Port Authority in hopes that it could be reused for community-based purposes.
Questioning the Demolition Order
A significant portion of the conversation focused on obtaining quotes for various approaches to address the building’s condition. Rantala read aloud an order issued by building officials from outside Galion—those with jurisdiction over such structures.
Importantly, however, the order does not mandate complete demolition. It specifically addresses concerns about the structural stability of the upper portion of the bell tower, not the sanctuary as a whole, and calls for abatement of the situation. Demolition would be only one of several possible responses.
Debate Deepens Over Demolition Scope and Process
The Port Authority’s current set of quotes addresses only two scenarios: full demolition of the bell tower, and demolition of both the tower and sanctuary. Rantala asserted that removing just the tower would require manual labor, making it an unreasonably expensive option. By contrast, he argued, demolishing the entire building could be done with less care, thereby reducing costs. As he also noted in the recent Design Review Board meeting, the stained glass windows would be handed over to the contractor to offset expenses—meaning they would be removed from Galion entirely as salvage.
Mayor Tom O’Leary challenged both the direction of the Port Authority’s actions and the process behind them. He reaffirmed the City’s preference for an alternative plan: removing only the upper portion of the tower to resolve safety concerns while preserving the sanctuary. O’Leary also objected to the Board’s decision to move forward based on a single bid.
While he acknowledged that Ohio law allows port authorities to act without competitive bidding, O’Leary warned that using that flexibility on such a high-profile and sensitive issue risked undermining public trust. He cautioned that this could lead to consequences such as the withdrawal of financial support. The Port Authority receives a significant portion of its operating income from the City of Galion.
That concern gained weight when a quote was distributed at the meeting from an outside source estimating the cost of removing only the top portion of the tower to be significantly lower than either full demolition option. Rantala admitted that the partial removal option had not yet been formally quoted, prompting questions about why all viable alternatives had not been pursued.
O’Leary described the Port Authority’s actions as both a “rush to acquisition and a rush to demolition.”
Adding to the confusion, Dan Brown of the Design Review Board offered a set of remarks that did not align with what that board had discussed at its most recent meeting. He quizzically stated that in his view, the Port Authority had met the threshold for demonstrating economic hardship—even though the application contained no quotes for preservation or partial demolition.
The Port Authority Board appeared to reach a tentative consensus in asking Rantala to seek a bid for partial tower removal and to obtain a structural engineering report for the sanctuary. However, no timeline was set for completing either step.
Removal of the tubular bell carillon was also the subject of a quote provided to Board at Wednesday’s meeting. That quote, provided by a Galion business, was substantial below $10,000. O’Leary said that the City was willing to fund that part of the project.
