Wright State’s real estate arm sued for foreclosure of 4 office buildings

The buildings owned by Double Bowler are in the busy commercial area across Colonel Glenn Highway from the university
Wright State’s property acquisition and management arm Double Bowler Properties Corp. increased its land holdings near Colonel Glenn Highway with a complex of four office buildings that cost $11.3 million. The buildings, including the former Wright-Patt Credit Union, surround WSU’s Alumni Foundation building on Presidential Drive. WSU’s main campus is at top left. CONTRIBUTED

Wright State’s property acquisition and management arm Double Bowler Properties Corp. increased its land holdings near Colonel Glenn Highway with a complex of four office buildings that cost $11.3 million. The buildings, including the former Wright-Patt Credit Union, surround WSU’s Alumni Foundation building on Presidential Drive. WSU’s main campus is at top left. CONTRIBUTED

Wright State University’s real estate arm, Double Bowler, is being sued in Greene County Common Pleas Court for foreclosure on four office building properties across Colonel Glenn Highway from WSU.

In 2019, Sunflower Public Finance, a lender for tax-exempt properties, entered into mortgage and bond agreements with Double Bowler for the properties, in amounts over $10.8 million.

In May 2024, Sunflower sued Double Bowler over alleged nonpayment, according to the lawsuit, and the courts appointed a receiver to run Double Bowler in September.

The receiver reported last fall that two of the four buildings had substantial vacancy, in part because WSU had been using some space, but moved those uses back to the main campus. The receiver cited Double Bowler’s lack of pursuit of new tenants and said some plumbing and environmental problems with the buildings needed to be addressed.

In February, Sunflower moved for summary judgment and a decree of foreclosure, saying Double Bowler was in default, with $10.56M in principal and interest still due.

The four properties are:

  • 3040 Presidential Drive and 2455 Executive Park Blvd: Both of these properties were purchased from Wright Patterson Credit Union in 2014, according to Greene County Auditor records. In total, the two properties were purchased for more than $10 million, according to the same records.  
  • 2555 University Boulevard: this 3.4 acre property was purchased in 2016 from Fairborn Value Investments LLC. Its address is associated with the Wright State Physicians Psychiatry/Psychotherapy Clinic.  
  • 3100 Presidential Drive: this property was purchased in May 2016 from Fairborn Value Investments, according to Greene County Auditor’s records. Aerospace Business Development Associates LLC and the AFIT Foundation both have this property listed as the company’s business address. 

A bench trial in the foreclosure case has ben moved back to June 25, according to Greene County Clerk of Courts records. The magistrate on the case is Margaret Young.

In 2019, the Ohio Inspector General found the private nonprofit real estate corporation Double Bowler violated state law and improperly paid former U.S. congressman Steve Austria for lobbying. The university violated state law by not getting approval from the State Controlling Board and the chancellor of the Ohio Department of Higher Education when buying property, according to the investigation.

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