The Oswego Village Board is set to vote Monday on an agreement to acquire the former Traughber Junior High School property for $2.1 million as part of a redevelopment agreement.

The property, located at 61 Franklin St. near the intersection of Washington Street and U.S. Route 71 in Oswego, is in a tax increment financing district.

When a municipality creates a TIF district, its property assessment is frozen and new or increased taxes generated by improvements are used to pay for improvements or other development incentives.

“While $2.1 million is identified as the purchase price for the property, it is subject to any purchase price adjustment authorized by the redevelopment agreement,” Oswego Village Administrator Dan Di Santo said in a memo to village trustees.

“The intent is that the village will not be paying to acquire the site, but rather the developer will be paying for the property through TIF increment generated from the development. All expenses and revenues generated by the development between the three parties will be negotiated through the redevelopment agreement and approved at a later date,” the memo states.

Oswego village trustees in December unanimously approved a concept plan for a 161-unit apartment and townhouse development to be developed on the property.

In response to village trustees voicing concerns about the height and density of the development, the developer scaled back the plans for Traughber Estates.

Trustees as well as Oswego Village President Ryan Kauffman thought a five-story building proposed as part of the plan was too tall, especially in comparison with the rest of the development.

The building has been removed from plans and replaced with two three-story apartment buildings. In addition, the number of units has been reduced from 202 units to 161 units.

As proposed, five three-story apartment buildings containing 125 units would be built as part of the latest plan. Also proposed are six two-story owner-occupied townhouse buildings containing 36 units.

“This is not my favorite project,” village trustee Karin McCarthy-Lange said prior to voting to approve the concept plan. “I don’t want to stand in the way of helping the school district financially. It’s not my ideal project. It’s not as creative as I would have liked it. It’s not as original as I would have liked. But I cannot in good faith stand in the way of saving the school district money and helping them in the long run.”

The building served as the original Traughber Junior High School until the current Traughber Junior High School was built in 2008. The property is 12.34 acres in size, with the building sitting on four acres.

The building hasn’t been fully operational since 2007, District 308 School Superintendent Andalib Khelghati said.

“There were 100 staff members in and out of that building every single day,” he said.

Khelghati said the property has become an albatross around the district’s neck. He said the district has to spend $250,000 a year for its upkeep.

“That does not include insurance costs,” he said.

A plan in 2018 to turn the building into a senior housing complex fell through.