District 200 looking at Woods building

Sedalia School District 200 officials are looking for places for programs and parking while the storm shelter at Smith-Cotton High School is under construction next year.

One solution could be a short-term lease of the Woods Supermarket building, but officials said the idea is preliminary.

Assistant Superintendents Harriet Wolfe and Brad Pollitt toured the building Friday as part of the search for space.

“Where the (storm shelter) building is going to be placed, there’s an existing building that’s going to be torn down, and we’re going to have to temporarily relocate” some programs such as the Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps program, an art room, and food storage, Wolfe said.

Wolfe said the district also considering relocation of those programs and facilities within the current Smith-Cotton building, and distributing the dry storage throughout the district.
The storm shelter, which will serve as a cafeteria and gym, will take away 100 parking spaces at the school.

The district received the FEMA grant last year, which would pay for 75 percent of the shelter’s estimated $3 million cost.

Wolfe said that the federal timelines for the storm shelter project will cause the space crunch before high school students move into the new high school, which is projected to be complete in July 2009.

Construction of the storm shelter is expected to be finished in March 2010.
“We’re just looking for a one-year fix,” she said.

Superintendent Doug Ebersold said the Woods tour was part of the process of exploring its options.
"You want to check out anything that might be a possibility," he said.

Wolfe said the district has not yet asked the owner of the building about whether a year-long lease would be possible, or how much it would cost.

The building, 100 E. Broadway Blvd., is owned by Fundamentals Company Trust, according to records at the Pettis County assessor’s office. Records list the trust’s agent as Kin Properties Inc. in Boca Raton, Fla. Full market value of the 28,000-square-foot building is $434,000, records state.

Ebersold said district officials are also considering the addition of a modular trailer for the high school and parking in the neighborhood.
"We're not looking at buildings so much as where we would be able to park," he said.

District officials will meet this week to discuss ideas, Wolfe said.

Plans could be brought before the school board at its May 27  meeting.

Wolfe said that any discussion related to real estate would occur during a closed session.

Missouri’s Sunshine Law states that public bodies can close meetings to discuss the lease, purchase, or sale of real estate. Under the law, records about any contracts must be made public upon the execution of the lease, sale, or purchase.