After an anticipated move to sell Park Elementary School to the city for $1, the Wichita school board has halted decision-making on the property until the end of June.
Park Elementary is one of six schools that closed in May following the school board’s decision in March.
City officials hope to turn Park into a homeless resource campus, dubbed the Multi-Agency Center or MAC. The center would offer housing spaces and support services for homeless individuals eventually and serve as an emergency winter shelter by November.
Turning Park’s property over to the city has two levels: First Wichita Public Schools would have to declare the school a surplus property. Then the district would have to sell it to the city.
If the board had voted to sell the property at its meeting Monday night, the Wichita City Council would have voted on an option agreement on Tuesday morning.
Now, the school board will not make a decision until June 27, at the earliest. It is not clear if this will delay plans for MAC.
The move to pause the sale came after BOE Vice President Diane Albert proposed that the board go into a private session where the board received “legal advice regarding transactions involving real property with the board’s legal counsel,” according to Albert.
After the brief session, board member Hazel Stabler, who represents the school board district Park sits in, asked that the board wait to vote on the future of Park.
“Now that the City of Wichita has released their comprehensive plan for the Multi-Agency Center, I would like to receive additional information before making a decision,” Stabler said.
Board President Stan Reeser said a workshop might be held between now and the June 27 meeting to discuss Park.
Source Agencies
