HILLSDALE COUNTY — LifeWays Community Mental Health is moving forward with plans to build a new state-of-the-art facility in Hillsdale, despite setbacks this summer when the Hillsdale County Board of Commissioners opted to let the voters decide the fate of their building bond proposal in August 2026.
LifeWays CEO Maribeth Leonard informed commissioners Aug. 26 that LifeWays will clear the land they already purchased on Hillsdale’s Industrial Drive this fall to prepare for construction.
Leonard is also meeting with representatives from County National Bank to discuss a commercial construction loan, and said updates on those discussions will be shared with officials as needed.
Minutes later, commissioners considered a resolution extending the lease for LifeWays at 25 Care Drive — a county-owned building — for another five years.
Commissioner Doug Ingles failed to gain majority support in shortening the length of the renewal to April 2027 from April 2030, which would’ve given officials enough time to renovate 25 Care Drive and move the 2B District Court before a separate lease in the Hillsdale Courthouse Annex Building expires in October 2028.
Hillsdale County sold the Annex Building in 2023 to Hillsdale Renaissance for $300,000.
“Where is the court going to go in 2028 if there’s a lease for 25 Care Drive?” Ingles asked.
Commissioner Brent Leininger again noted the estimated $4 million price tag to prepare the building for the 2B District Court, reiterating his belief the court could simply merge into the Hillsdale County Courthouse “if they eliminated four or five positions.”
Commissioner Brad Benzing, in response, pointed to a study conducted by the National Center for State Courts, which already found the courthouse doesn’t have enough space.
“It won’t go into the historic courthouse … we don’t have the space there,” Benzing said. “It won’t go into the (Hillsdale) County Offices Building, because we don’t have the space there either.”
The fact remains that Hillsdale’s 2B District Court must relocate by October 2028, unless it reaches an agreement with Hillsdale Renaissance, which offered two options earlier this month.
The first is a five-year lease, beginning in January 2026, at $15,000 a month, totaling $900,000 over the course of the extension. The second option would reduce that payment to $5,000 a month, if commissioners agree to pay a $200,000 stipend to the City of Hillsdale’s Tax Increment Finance Authority for a proposed road diet along M-99.
No action was taken on the offers Aug. 26.
Meanwhile, commissioners face legal threats from the judiciary at the 2B District Court, communicated by Judge Megan Stiverson on July 22.
“The judges have sought legal counsel and we are prepared to act,” Stiverson said. “This board will be legally responsible for paying all of our attorney fees and bearing the brunt of a potential lawsuit … probably the most fiscally irresponsible thing I’ve seen a board do.
“We want a plan … a resolution as to the future of the (2B) District Court and where it will go. We have less than three years to vacate a building that is falling apart around me.”
— Contact reporter Corey Murray at cmurray@hillsdale.net or follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @cmurrayhdn.
This article originally appeared on Hillsdale Daily News: Hillsdale extends lease with LifeWays, possibly abandoning plan for 2B District Court
Reporting by Corey J. Murray, Hillsdale Daily News / Hillsdale Daily News
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