Miles College has signed a purchase agreement with Birmingham-Southern College for the 192-acre campus that’s been closed since the end of May.
The announcement from Miles College on Wednesday, first reported by The Birmingham Times, comes after months of uncertainty around the future of Birmingham-Southern’s Bush Hills campus.
The purchase price – and long-term future for the property, – remain unclear. Birmingham-Southern’s land, buildings and equipment had a roughly $65 million value last year, according to an audit and tax records the college filed with the IRS.
Spokespeople for Miles College and Birmingham-Southern College declined to specify or comment further beyond a statement released Wednesday.
The two schools are about 6 miles, or a 10-minute drive on the interstate, apart, but have historically served different groups of students.
Birmingham-Southern President Daniel B. Coleman said in the statement that the institution was “very pleased” to move forward with Miles College.
“Our hope has been to find a buyer whose mission paralleled BSC’s mission of educating young people for lives of service and significance, and whose presence on the Hilltop would also benefit the surrounding communities who have been such good neighbors to BSC for more than 100 years,” Coleman said. “With its roots in the Methodist tradition of service and its commitment to preparing young people for lives of leadership, Miles College fits that description. We will continue to work diligently with President Bobbie Knight and her team to ensure a smooth pathway to closing the sale.”
Both of the institutions’ boards of trustees voted unanimously to enter the agreement, Miles College said.
Miles College first signed its letter of intent on June 19 to begin negotiations to buy the campus in Bush Hills. The private, liberal arts school in Fairfield is a historically Black college and enrolls roughly 1,200 students, per its latest numbers from the fall of 2022. The college generates nearly $70 million in economic impact, according to the United Negro College Fund.
“BSC will continue to operate as a corporate entity through the remainder of the wind-down, which includes wrapping up a range of business matters,” Coleman said in a statement.
Once the sale is completed, Birmingham-Southern will work with the Alabama Attorney General’s office on a plan for the college endowment and seek court approval.
“We expect that process will take many months or even years to complete, and we will communicate with our endowment contacts once we know more,” Coleman said.
Last year, the college reported nearly $36 million in debt, per the tax forms. But the institution didn’t file for bankruptcy or otherwise outline a public plan for settling its accounts.
Birmingham-Southern was financially strapped in the years leading up to its closure. But the 168-year-old institution had financial troubles for decades before. In March, the board of trustees voted to cease operations, blaming the state treasurer’s denial of a $30 million bridge loan.
Because the college owes ServisFirst Bank $16.5 million, the bank has first claim to proceeds from the sale of the campus.
This comes after failed offers by Alabama A&M University to buy the campus: an initial $52 million offer in May followed by another offer of $65.5 million.
