Cortland proposes emergency purchase of former elementary school at 264 Park Street

The Cortland City Council heard a proposal to adopt an emergency ordinance authorizing the mayor to buy 264 Park Street, the former Cortland Elementary School, as an immediate step to address a vacant, blighted property in a residential area.

Councilors and the mayor said the purchase is intended to clear a public-safety hazard and make the site eligible for county brownfield and demolition funding. "There is not a gas well," the mayor told the meeting, relaying site checks by state and utility officials and saying the line at street level was "cut and abandoned on 04/10/2024." The mayor said she had contacted the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and Enbridge; ODNR’s on-site inspector — identified only by his first name, Anthony — had concluded the feature was a pipeline regulator, not an oil-and-gas well, and Enbridge’s external affairs representative, Michael Cunnington, told the city the former meter/regulating equipment was removed and that new service could be installed if needed.

Why it matters: the city faces repeated…