The Morning News
Local News for Northwest Arkansas
New To Recommend Sale Of Campus
By Rose Ann Pearce
The Morning News
FAYETTEVILLE - An offer to sell the Fayetteville High School campus to the University of Arkansas for $59 million may be on the table if the Fayetteville School Board approves Thursday.
The recommendation by Superintendent Bobby New could lead to more detailed negotiation between the school district and the university in what could be a real estate transaction of historic proportion for both entities.
The recommendation doesn't bind the school board to a sale, nor does it address where the high school might move if the university decides it wants to buy the property.
Chancellor-elect Dave Gearhart said the recommendation "probably is what we need" to further consider buying the 40-acre high school campus.
The university's position has been one of wait and see until the school board decided to sell the property. Chancellor John White, Gearhart and a delegation of university department chairs toured the high school complex in February.
"We'll take it very seriously," Gearhart said, noting there are many details that need to be ironed out. He plans to confer with B. Alan Sugg, University of Arkansas System president, and other officials.
The purchase could come up during the next Board of Trustees meeting June 6 at the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute on Petit Jean Mountain. A response to the school board likely would come after that.
School board member Tim Kring said Friday he continues to be more concerned about terms and conditions beyond the recommendation.
"This puts in writing what we said several months ago," Kring said. "It's a formalization awaiting an offer with terms and conditions from the university."
Kring said he can't consider the sale of the high school until the university makes an offer on the property.
New and Gearhart emphasized the complexity of any terms or conditions that would be part of any sale agreement.
"This could be the first sale (in Arkansas) of its kind according to the Department of Education," New said. He said school district officials have discussed a possible sale to determine the impact it could have on the district's revenue stream.
"Without a sale, our options are extremely limited," New said of building a new high school.
Location is a separate issue and should be dealt with outside the scope of the recommendation, New said.
"I've listened to the dialogue and to the Select II committee," he said. "I'm supporting the recommendation made by a committee that worked tirelessly."
Asked if the district would abandon any plans for a site it owns on Deane Solomon Road, New responded, "I haven't ruled out any property but we have a recommendation and I'm respectful of that."
If the high school property is sold, district patrons will be asked to approve an increase in their tax rate although what the increase might be remains undetermined.
A millage election could be called in the next 12 months. The minimum request probably will be for 2.1 mills, which the district has lost in the last few years as a result of rollbacks required by the Arkansas Constitution.
The School Board will receive New's recommendation at its meeting at 5 p.m. Thursday.
FAST FACTS
Superintendent's Recommendation
Superintendent Bobby New plans to make this recommendation to the Fayetteville School Board next week:
"The administration recommends that the Fayetteville Board of Education offers to sell to the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, approximately 40 acres generally know as Fayetteville High School, the administration buildings and the sports facilities, for the sum of $59 million and, further, that this offer shall expire July 1, 2008, with terms and conditions of the contract with the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, to be approved by the Fayetteville Board of Education."
Source: Staff Report
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
3 comments:
Jonah, if that is a direct quote or copy and paste of New's written recommendation, he needs to hire someone to type up his material for publication.
"offers" instead of "offer" ?
"know as" instead of "known as" ?
He clearly is a stupid, power-hungry person with no appreciation of this community and a bad reputation in Faulkner County where he last ruled without community support. But being functionally illiterate isn't something anyone has mentioned before — or is it? Of course, superintendents are often people who got the grade of D in most of their English classes, except for the former coaches who played on athletic teams and got their coaches to physically intimidate their gentle lady English teachers into giving them C's to keep them on the team.
You better stop accusing Aubrey of being jonah. They both may be so insulted that they come at you at once on this.
Just because they agree on a lot of subjects doesn't mean they agree on everything and their style isn't the same.
Both may have been journalists. Maybe both may have been English teachers. But you, 10:18, sound like you might also have been both plus being a lawyer.
Are you Jonah? If so, let's see what you have to say about this on your blog!
Coody pretends to love Fayetteville. And he used to hang out on Dickson Street without his wife a lot before he started urging developers to destroy it.
Has he ever read anything written by the late Senator William Fulbright? The only thing he appears to have read is the title of one book, "The Arrogance of Power." And decided to use it as his theme for life! Too bad he didn't read the book!
Post a Comment