DELAWARE — Delaware County is expanding its footprint near the Byxbe Campus with the purchase of a 16-acre parcel for more than $2.6 million.
Commissioners approved the acquisition during their Monday meeting. The undeveloped plot sits on the eastern side of Byxbe Parkway, parallel with the county’s existing Byxbe Campus.
The Delaware County Finance Authority purchased the land earlier this month before selling it to the county.
“This is land we’re acquiring for the long-term future,” Commissioner Jeff Benton said.
Benton said the purchase is a strategic move, given the property’s location next to the existing Byxbe Campus.
The county plans to retain ownership of the land, meaning it will not be sold to a private developer.
“It’s adjacent to our existing Byxbe Campus, and with the new social services building, we’re essentially built out there,” Benton said. “We don’t have any specific plans for it yet.”
Byxbe Campus will soon be full
Commissioners will break ground on a new addition to the Byxbe Campus on May 18 at 1:30 p.m.
The $35.8 million project will house Jobs and Family Services, the Board of Developmental Disabilities, Delaware-Morrow Mental Health & Recovery Services and Veterans Services, with completion expected in late 2027.
“Many residents who are clients of one of these agencies are also clients of the others, so having all these services available under one roof will be an enormous help,” Commissioner Barb Lewis said at the State of the County address on Monday.
The Byxbe Campus includes a 144,000-square-foot building at 1610 State Route 521 that houses the Delaware County Engineer’s Office, Regional Sewer District, Regional Planning Commission, Building Safety and Facilities Management, Soil and Water Conservation District and OSU Extension.
The Sheriff’s Office also has an administrative building at the site.
County commissioners purchased the 64-acre site for $1.7 million in 2017 after the Delaware Area Career Center — which previously owned the land — consolidated to one campus.
$42 million later, the campus opened in late 2023 and by 2027, it will be nearly full.
