West G Board Gives Newbury Trustees Deadline on School Property
I’d like to wrap it up within a year. We need a time frame for the Newbury trustees to come up with (a proposal). – Bill Beers
Newbury Township Trustees have until Aug. 1 to notify the West Geauga Schools Board of Education whether they intend to pursue negotiations for all or part of the Newbury Schools property.
Newbury Township Trustees have until Aug. 1 to notify the West Geauga Schools Board of Education whether they intend to pursue negotiations for all or part of the Newbury Schools property.
During an hour-long virtual West Geauga board meeting June 8, board member Chet Ramey said it’s time for Newbury trustees to “fish or cut bait” and make a decision.
West G school officials would like to turn over the school property ownership within a year, to avoid maintenance costs or the buildings becoming an eyesore.
Under Ohio law, school districts wanting to get rid of property must first offer to sell it to a charter school within the district, then to local government and finally, by public auction, board members said previously. There are no charter schools within the district, so local government is next in line.
The Newbury Schools property transfers to West Geauga July 1.
“I’d like to wrap it up within a year,” West Geauga Board President Bill Beers said Monday. “We need a time frame for the Newbury trustees to come up with (a proposal).”
The West G and Newbury boards of education conducted a community survey two weeks ago seeking ideas about the best use for the 40-acre Newbury property, which consists of a 96,000-square-foot main building with a gym, kitchen and cafeteria; a 30,000-square-foot intermediate building with an auditorium and multi-purpose room; a 4,800-square-foot bus garage; a newly renovated stadium and acres of athletic fields.
The survey’s results were scheduled to be reported at Monday’s board meeting, but Beers said the final report was not yet finished.
“The draft report from (consultants) Burges and Burges is not ready yet, but will be completed shortly and given to you,” Beers said. “I can tell you that the feeling is strong that at least parts of it should be managed by the Newbury trustees and should go back to the township trustees.”
Preliminary results of the survey have shown a large majority of Newbury residents want the township to retain control of the athletic fields and the intermediate building, which now houses a branch of the Geauga County Public Library. In addition, several people would like to see the township make use of the bus garage, possibly for much needed space for the Newbury road department.
Monday, all five school board members agreed they would like to see the township take over the property, but some questioned the time needed, whether trustees can get the necessary funding and what other entities are interested in the property.
“The township would be a great organization to run it. I just want to know if they’re interested,” Ramey said.
“I would like to see what else is available. Good will from the community is very important,” board member Dan Thoreson added.
Board member Kathy Leavenworth said the Newbury community has known for years the district might eventually consolidate and the community needs to support the trustees with financial help in buying, maintaining the property and deciding its best use.
“The community needs to come forward, too,” Leavenworth said. “I’m a little disappointed they’ve not been proactive. They could have been working on it prior to the (transfer) date.”
“They’ve known for a long time, but it’s been a political hot potato,” board member Ben Kotowski added.
The board decided to ask Newbury trustees to make a formal expression of interest to them by Aug. 1, giving them time to meet and discuss the issue. If they agree they are interested in the taking over the property, they can be given more time to negotiate, to decide the best plan for use and to find ways to fund it, possibly with a levy.
“Their taxes are going down (with the transfer),” Leavenworth said. “They need to get that message to the community.”
Thoreson said this decision did not just “come out of the blue.”
“If you give them six months to decide, they’ll take six months,” he said. “If you give them a year, they’ll take a year.”
The board agreed to also allow welcome proposals from any other interested parties.
In related discussion, board members decided to give the library a three-month extension on its lease of part of the intermediate building and ask for some maintenance costs to be shared while decisions are being made for the property’s future. After the three months, the lease could be extended month to month. The library’s current lease expires July 1.
