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School District to Own Former Grocery Store Site
FIRST REPORTED 6:00am 11/10/09 The Galesburg School District will soon officially own a property it can either put to potentially good use, or turn around and sell in a couple years for much more than it's paying for it.

The Galesburg School Board Monday night voted six-to-one to purchase the former Giant Foods site at Fremont and Seminary Streets near Silas Willard Elementary School, most recently, the home of Midwest Regional Home Care and owned by the parent company of Galesburg Cottage Hospital.

District-205 Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Operations Guy Cahill says while there is currently no specific plan for the property, he sees it as, in his words, an investment in the future.

"Should we never use it, and return it to the tax rolls, would we get...the value we put into it? Yeah, I think so, probably in spades," Cahill said.

Cahill says it's possible the building could someday be rehabbed as classroom space, or the district headquarters could someday move there.

The lone "no" vote came from board member Mike Panther, who essentially said the district should say thanks, but no thanks. "We're talking somewhere between...$500,000 to $800,000 to get this building usable," Panther said. "To me, that's a lot of money you're asking tax payers for, especially in light of the fact that we're going to have to levy more to meet present budget."

Board president Robert Lindstrom says the offer, and the location, are both too good to pass up. "It's parking, it's delivery for kids and buses, cars," Lindstrom said. "And while we've addressed that in recent years, it still needs improvement. This is going to help that situation greatly, I think. It's going to increase the playground area for the kids there, and that certainly is best for kids as well as the safety factors."

Panther also questioned why the public hasn't had any say, despite the fact that real estate negotiations are allowed to be closed to the public under Illinois law. Several board members said that's exactly what the public comment section of every board meeting is for, and no one spoke Monday night.

The district will pay $200,000 for the property, while the remaining $250,000 of the asking price will be absorbed by Tennessee-based Community Health Systems.

The almost half-million dollar asking price at the time of CHS' counter is less than half of its most recently appraised and assessed values.
11 10 09 by Newsroom
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