Averett University announced Monday that it will sell its North Campus facility to the Danville Regional Foundation and the Danville-Pittsylvania Regional Industrial Facility Authority for just over $18 million.
The deal, which was finalized Jan. 26, includes the property and facilities of North Campus, Averett’s 70-acre athletics hub about a 10-minute drive from its main campus in Danville.
The DRF and the RIFA will each own 50%, with the private university leasing back and having primary use of the facilities.
Averett’s total enrollment for the spring semester is 1,019, school spokesman Drew Wilson said.
“This partnership is crucial for the long-term stability of Averett University,” university President Thomas Powell said in a statement. The university has faced dire financial straits since spring 2024, when it was revealed that its finances had been mismanaged, which gutted Averett’s modest endowment and left it with cash flow challenges.
Averett’s press release highlighted that the deal will keep the North Campus property “under local control rather than risk having it acquired by an out-of-town developer.”
Averett may repurchase the facilities at any time for the original sale price, according to the university’s announcement. Under the terms of the sale and leaseback, the $18.15 million price will be paid over three years. Averett will lease the campus for a maximum of $7.45 million over 10 years.
Under the leaseback agreement, Averett will have first priority to use the property, but the announcement Monday noted that the university, DRF and RIFA will “explore additional ways to utilize the property for the benefit of the region,” which could include sporting events and concerts.
“This partnership is an excellent opportunity to support Averett and provide even more opportunities for our neighbors as our region continues to grow by leaps and bounds,” said William “Vic” Ingram, chair of the RIFA and a Pittsylvania County supervisor, in the press release Monday.
The RIFA is a partnership between Danville and Pittsylvania County that works to enhance economic growth in the city and county.
The DRF, a nonprofit regional booster, has been a longtime supporter of Averett. In 2014, the DRF granted nearly $2 million to Averett to create the university’s Center for Community Engagement and Career Competitiveness.
Averett’s plans to sell the athletic campus were first revealed in August in documents filed relating to the university’s municipal bonds.
The university then confirmed the plans to sell and lease back North Campus, but would only describe the potential buyers as “regional investors, including the Danville Regional Foundation,” at that time.
That announcement was the university’s biggest swing at long-term survival since its financial crisis became public in spring 2024.
In the months following the revelations, Averett announced temporary furloughs and said it would phase out some of its less popular academic programs. It has also unloaded several parcels of property in the Danville area, including the president’s residence. Powell, Averett’s third president since January 2025, lives in the house that serves as the president’s office.
The university had to lobby its bondholders for permission to sell the North Campus property, which it achieved in October. Averett had been in nonmonetary default on about $13 million in municipal bonds for much of 2025. The university had made its payments on time but was in violation of the financial health standards established when the bonds originated due to its high amount of debt and its cash shortfall. Bondholders agreed in October to waive those violations.
The price for the North Campus deal is nearly the amount that the university says was withdrawn from its endowment between 2022 and 2024 to cover the school’s bills, according to a lawsuit by Averett against its former CFO and investment firm. That federal lawsuit was ordered to arbitration in August.
In addition to the North Campus deal, Averett also recently finalized the sale of its 130-acre equestrian center in Providence, North Carolina.
The university listed the center for sale in spring 2025 for $1.6 million.
Wilson confirmed on Jan. 21 that the facility had been sold for $800,000, with the university continuing to use the facility “at least through June 2027.”
Averett offers an equestrian studies program along with equestrian athletic programs.
Property records for Caswell County, North Carolina, show the transaction was finalized on Dec. 31. The firm that purchased the center is registered to Bilal Hamze, a Greensboro-area business owner. Hamze could not be reached Monday at a phone number listed on his state annual business filings, and did not immediately respond to a message left at one of his businesses, a used car dealership in Greensboro.
Grace Mamon contributed to this report.