Wichita district plans to sell surplus school buildings

The Wichita school district wants to sell five vacant school buildings and about 17 acres of land near Jackson Elementary at 29th North and Woodlawn, according to district documents.

School board members on Monday will consider a plan to “sell surplus property and eliminate the costs of ongoing maintenance,” according to an item on Monday’s agenda. The properties are:

▪ Blackbear Bosin Academy (formerly Price Elementary), 6123 E. 11th St.

▪ Gateway Alternative, 640 N. Emporia

▪ Longfellow Elementary, 2116 S. Main

▪ Metro-Boulevard Alternative High School, 751 S. George Washington Blvd.

▪ Metro-Meridian Alternative High School, 301 S. Meridian

▪ And about 17 acres of excess land near Jackson Elementary, 2727 N. Woodlawn

Superintendent John Allison has recommended that board members hire Grant and Brad Tidemann of J.P. Weigand and Sons to sell the properties – some by auction and some by private treaty, according to the document.

In a private treaty, a property is listed for sale with an asking price. A prospective buyer makes an offer to the real estate agent, who then presents the offer to the seller. The seller – in this case, the school district – would then decide whether or not to accept the offer.

Allison has proposed selling three schools – Longfellow, Metro-Boulevard and Gateway – by auction. Blackbear Bosin, Metro-Meridian and the land near Jackson would be sold by private treaty.

The Wichita school district has struggled for years to maintain vacant school buildings and other properties.

The last school building sold was the former Mueller Elementary, near 24th and Estelle. Christian Faith Centre bought the school and surrounding property for $40,000 in 2013. It is now Urban Preparatory Academy, a private school.

The district keeps some surplus properties for storage or emergencies. When a fire damaged much of College Hill Elementary in 2013, for example, the district relocated the school to the former Bryant Elementary in west Wichita.

This story was originally published April 6, 2017 at 6:08 PM with the headline "Wichita district plans to sell surplus school buildings."