Item: HSU Denies Lease, Aims To Buy Property

The Item reported September 13 that SHSU officials said no to Maalouf Properties on an offer of a $135,000-a-year lease on property it wants on Sam Houston Avenue:

Maalouf offered SHSU administrators a five-year lease at $11,250 per month on the 2.5-acre site at 2257 Sam Houston Ave., which includes a 1,900 square foot decommissioned Army Reserve facility. The terms of the lease also include five options to renew the lease and a $33,750 security deposit.

But SHSU spokeswoman Julia May said the university has been clear about its intentions to purchase the 2.5-acre site, first from the city of Huntsville and then from buyer Maalouf, even though SHSU officials did not bid on it during the city’s open bid period in June.

Since then, SHSU has considered purchasing the land either directly or through mediation, as well as threatening to acquire it from Maalouf through eminent domain.