YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio -- The Plaza Place parking deck on Champion Street downtown, built by the city in the early 1970s and until recently owned by embattled real estate developer Lou Frangos, is the site of Eastern Gateway Community College’s new Valley Center.
The announcement will be made at a news conference this afternoon, officials said.
The parking deck includes first-floor offices as well as a restaurant, Café Cimmento. The structure will be renovated to accommodate classrooms in time for the start of classes in late August.
“We’re tremendously excited about the opportunity to solidify our presence in downtown Youngstown,” said the president of Eastern Gateway Community College, Laura Meeks, in a prepared statement.
EGCC is partnering with Higher Education Partners-EGCC Ohio to open the new Valley Center. The community college will provide all instruction at the site, which will be operated by Higher Education Partners, a private entity.
Last September Frangos lost control of the parking deck when it was placed into receivership by a judge in Cleveland. At the time, Frangos, who also operates parking lots in Cleveland, was embroiled in a series of legal disputes with his investors, partners, vendors —and the city -- surrounding his projects here, including the Realty Towers, the Stambaugh building and former National City Bank building.
EGCC opened its first Valley Center in 2009 at Northside Medical Center. It currently operates in the Choffin Career and Technical Center. The community college also conducts classes at its Warren Center in that city’s downtown, and at the region’s career and technical centers.
Spring enrollment at its Mahoning Valley sites topped 800, and its fall numbers are expected to be higher, officials say.
EGCC’s main campus is in Steubenville.
Copyright 2012 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.