DANVILLE — After nearly a year of deciding Danville Intermediate Building’s fate, the Danville Board of Education voted to not lease it to any organization or private entity.
Based on consolation with legal advisors and safety and security experts, the board’s recommendation states, “it is not in the best, long-term interest of the school district to lease the intermediate/administrative building to any organization or private entities.”
The vote was 4-0 in favor, with board member Carolyn Addair abstaining due to being a board member of the Sew Special Network, which operates inside the building.
The Danville Heritage Association (DHA) was interested in operating inside the intermediate building, which would have been leased from the district.
The DHA wanted a long-term lease, likely 20 years, in order to secure grant funding.
The DHA, led by Danville resident Pat Crow, had many ideas on how to repurpose the historic building — either becoming a senior center or library among other options.
Crow, along with DHA board members, attended Monday’s meeting where the vote was made.
Before the vote was cast, Crow stood in front of the board to make one final argument on why the building should be repurposed. But it wasn’t enough in the end.
“I think the school board is tone deaf to what our objectives were,” Crow said after the meeting in an interview with Knox Pages. “I think we could have worked out a compromise to use this building and they still could have utilized the space.
“We were even willing to try to find additional property next door to build their parking lots on, but they pretty well made their mind up. I think that their mind was made up months ago.”
Since its inception, the DHA collected over 240 letters in support, fundraised approximately $125,000 and completed several studies to assess the intermediate’ building’s structure and how much it would cost to renovate.
Moving forward, the DHA will continue in its current form, Crow said.
“I consider this circumstance was either going to be win-win or lose-lose,” Crow said. “There was no win-lose. And I think there were members of the school board that felt it was going to be win-lose, that they were going to win and tear the building down and we were going to lose.
“I think it’s lose-lose because it’s a loss for the heritage of our community.”
A recommendation would be needed for the building to be demolished, which isn’t expected for likely another year, Snively said.
Plans haven’t been “drawn up” yet, nor have any bids been sent out, Snively said.
“We’re going to know more about a timeline for the potential demolition of this building after this week,” he said.
With the potential of adding a secure entryway to the eastern portion of the high school building (near the intermediate building,) the district is planning on using some rooms in the intermediate building for this upcoming school year during the construction phase of the project if it were needed, Snively said.
Snively said the recommendation was a difficult decision, but it’s what’s best for the longevity of the academic and safety programming of the district’s students.
Board member Paul Stover echoed Snively’s remarks.
“When we look at the overall picture, the board had to make the best decision [for the district,]” he said.
