The 200,000-square-foot state office building, empty since 2007, was sold for $3 million. Instead of a developer, the buyer was the Columbus Partnership, the private, nonprofit collection of the area's most powerful corporations, which announced plans to turn the seven-story building into a mix of offices, retail space and residences. The Partnership has been active in economic development since its founding in 2002, but until now, has stayed away from bricks-and-mortar. The purchase signaled a more active role for the Partnership in Downtown development. The impression was heightened by the timing of the purchase — nearly simultaneous with changes at the Columbus Downtown Development Corp. that gave Partnership members seven of the 13 CDDC board positions.