The downtown Columbus building that has housed Bartholomew County’s daily newspaper for 45 years has a new owner.
Southeastern Indiana Medical Holdings, an affiliate company of Columbus Regional Health, purchased The Republic’s office from Rayanna Corp., a local company established by the Brown-Marshall family of Columbus that owned the newspaper for more than 140 years.
The downtown building’s architectural significance – having been named to the National Register of Historic Places in 2012, one of seven in the city to have that distinction – was appealing, said President and CEO Jim Bickel.
Changes to the building’s interior will be made, but the architectural integrity of the building – with floor-to-ceiling windows on all sides – will be maintained, he said.
Southeastern Indiana Medical Holdings paid $2.77 million for the property, which has 23,000 square feet on the building’s main floor, on 2.18 acres.
When Texas-based AIM Media purchased The Republic and its sister publications on Nov. 1, it chose not to purchase The Republic real estate.
– The Republic (Columbus)
