Commissioners vote to transfer Real Estate Expo to redevelopment authority
The Washington County commissioners are handing over responsibility of the annual Real Estate Expo to the county’s redevelopment authority to plan and organize future events.
In a split vote during Thursday’s meeting, the commissioners approved a motion to have the Redevelopment Authority of the County of Washington take over the third annual event this spring in what they hope will be a continued economic driver for the county.
According to the motion, the “marketing, graphic design and setup support” of next year’s expo will still be handled by the county, while the overall responsibilities and coordination of the event will be coordinated by both sides.
“It’s better to be placed with redevelopment because they’re better suited for this,” Washington County Commission Chairman Nick Sherman said Friday. “It’s a good project for them.”
Redevelopment Authority Executive Director Bob Griffin said he will be “coordinating with the commissioners to determine next steps in planning and presenting” for next year’s Real Estate Expo.
“We appreciate the trust they have in our ability to deliver quality projects and programs for Washington County,” Griffin said in a written statement.
The county held its first Real Estate Expo at Washington & Jefferson College in March 2025 and then organized a pared down event this past March. The event has been touted as an economic driver by some and a waste of time and resources by others.
During Thursday’s voting meeting, Commissioner Larry Maggi, who has been a critic of the expo, pointed to an audit released Wednesday from Washington County Controller Heather Sheatler that showed “significant findings” with last year’s Real Estate Expo that he thought should be addressed before it was transferred to the redevelopment authority.
“There were six findings on there. I would at least like to get those remedied before we do anything with that,” Maggi said during Thursday’s meeting.
“I didn’t get a chance to read it. What does that audit have to do with moving it?” Sherman said.
“Well, we’re moving it to another (entity), just to get it squared away,” Maggi said. “There were significant findings.”
Sherman said he would be fine having a discussion at a later date but wanted to move forward with transferring responsibility of the expo to the redevelopment authority now to give it time to plan for next year’s event.
“I would just like to get this moving,” Sherman said.
“My reasoning is I think we’re passing on a problem to the redevelopment authority,” Maggi said. “If we’re going to do that, I’d just like for it to be a clean move. These are issues that need to be taken care of and we are apparently handing them over to the redevelopment authority.”
With that, Sherman seconded the motion made a few moments earlier by Commissioner Electra Janis to hand over responsibility of the Real Estate Expo to the redevelopment authority, and it passed 2-to-1, with Maggi voting against.
Sheatler’s audit showed the 2026 Real Estate Expo cost $97,814 and was over budget by $8,314. The audit also claimed inappropriate use of federal and county funds, namely the use of federal American Rescue Plan Act money and money from the county’s general fund.
The audit suggested better financial monitoring and budgeting, while also claiming there were inadequate supporting documents for expenditures along with some non-compliance with IRS Form 1099 reporting requirements.
Sheatler suggested the expo be incorporated into the county’s general fund ledger in future fiscal years to “strengthen oversight by establishing a more consistent process for recording revenues, reviewing expenditures, maintaining supporting documentation and monitoring financial activity” for the next event. That would also allow the expo to be included in the county’s annual external audit, she said.
“This would provide a more consistent approach to financial oversight and help streamline the auditing process in future years,” the controller stated in her audit.
Sherman blasted the audit, claiming Sheatler has an axe to grind with the commissioners and the expo after she released a similarly critical report following the 2025 event. He added the redevelopment authority has nearly $34,000 in “seed money” from money raised during the previous event that will help it plan the next Real Estate Expo.
“It’s an unfortunate example that the (controller) doesn’t know what she’s doing,” Sherman said Friday.
It’s not known when or where next year’s expo will be held.