A Logan-based charter school’s plan to open an upper-school campus on Nelsonville’s Public Square has become the small Athens County city’s biggest civic debate this fall, with residents, teachers and downtown business owners packing two October meetings to argue over zoning, school funding and what a school would mean for the square.
Southeast Ohio Classical Academy, known as SOCA, wants to use the building at 10 W. Washington St. — formerly the Athens County Community Cares Resource Center — for many of its upper-school students, according to reporting by the Athens County Independent. The building sits in Nelsonville’s downtown commercial district, so the school would need a zoning variance to operate there.
SOCA opened in Logan in 2024 and currently provides free kindergarten through seventh-grade education, expanding to eighth grade next school year and intending to serve grades K-12 by 2030, the Independent reported. SOCA Principal Tim Allen told the Independent in an email that the Nelsonville building would free up needed space on the Logan lower-school campus, and that he hopes to see about 120 students attending classes at the Washington Street location by 2030.
The building’s new owner bought it to support the school. Jonathan Cozad placed an uncontested $776,000 bid for the property in late September, according to a public records request reported by the Independent, and appeared at council’s Oct. 14 session to ask about a zoning variance, telling council he believes the school would bring increased traffic downtown.
Opposition has centered on Nelsonville-York City Schools. English teacher Casey Cox voiced reservations at both the Oct. 20 planning and development committee meeting and the Oct. 26 council meeting, telling the committee, in comments reported by the Independent, that when enrollment and funds are continuously drawn away from the district, it limits the opportunities the district can provide its students. In Ohio, state funding follows the student, so enrollment shifts carry budget consequences for home districts.
Downtown businesses have raised a different concern. Patrick Norway, owner of The Mine Tavern, told the Oct. 20 meeting that the site falls within 500 feet of his business, which could complicate future liquor licenses near the city’s newly approved Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area, according to the Independent. Existing holders would be grandfathered, but schools within 500 feet of an applicant can object during future licensing.
For now, the debate is running ahead of the paperwork. As of the Independent’s reporting, SOCA has not formally applied for a zoning variance through the city administration, and council member Gregg Clement said at the Oct. 26 meeting that council would not respond to public comments since the academy had not yet submitted an application. The city’s Board of Zoning Appeals, which would consider the variance, currently has several vacancies; if it is not filled, council can act on its behalf under the city charter.
What happens next starts with that application. Once SOCA files, the variance process will give both sides a formal hearing — and the city is seeking residents to serve on the Board of Zoning Appeals in the meantime. Allen told the Independent the academy has toured other sites and explored ways to expand in Logan, framing the question as not whether SOCA will keep growing through graduation, but how.
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