Robins council tables decision on lease vs. transfer of town building for Northmore Family Resource Center

The Robins Town Council on Monday agreed to delay a decision on whether to lease or convey a town-owned building to the Northmore Family Resource Center, asking staff to clarify what the nonprofit needs and to return next month with recommendations.

The matter prompted a detailed legal and financial exchange. A staff member advising the council said the basic choice is whether the town will retain title and grant long-term use or convey title outright. "If you have a lease for 10 years or less, you don't have to use the public disposition statute," the staff member said, warning that agreements longer than 10 years are treated like a sale and trigger public-notice and upset-bid procedures.

The town manager argued a lease could be preferable on the town's books. He noted the building is a depreciable asset and keeping it on the town's balance sheet protects municipal finances; he also cautioned that some grant programs or funders might require that an applicant hold title. "There may be some grants that they're wanting to access that may not be available if they do not have title in hand," the town manager said.

Councilors and staff also discussed a proposed clawback or reversion clause. Staff described language that would allow the town to reclaim title if the nonprofit stopped providing agreed services within a set period — the draft used 20 years as the trigger, which staff described as an arbitrary but defensible horizon to ensure sustained public benefit. Commissioners asked about alternate timeframes and potential longer terms if required by the nonprofit.

Other practical issues were raised: parcel boundaries (the current proposal applies to a roughly 0.22-acre parcel, not an adjacent 0.53-acre lot), examples of past deals (one existing agreement with Hope Academy was a 10-year, $1 lease), and how an upset bid process would work if the town treated a long lease as a disposition.

Rather than vote, the council agreed to table the item. The mayor asked staff to meet with Northmore representatives (identified in discussion as Claire and Jessica) to determine whether a short-term lease, a long lease with conditions, or a conveyance best supports both the nonprofit's fundraising and the town's fiduciary responsibilities. Staff were asked to return with a recommendation at the next council meeting.

The question affects both the town's accounting and the nonprofit's ability to pursue about $2,000,000 in outside funding mentioned during the meeting; councilors emphasized they did not want to foreclose potential grants while also protecting town assets.