Plans to rent the school fall through
Ashley Hunter
ECB Publishing, Inc.
The Jefferson Elementary School (JES), also known as the Mamie B. Scott Elementary School, may be approaching the end of its time as a Jefferson County School District-owned property, following a school board meeting that was held earlier this month.
For several months, the school campus of JES has been a hot topic for the district. From vandalism and break-ins to arguments over the future of the campus, discussions over JES have often made it into the school board's monthly meetings.
During the Monday, May 11, virtual meeting of the school board, JES made yet another appearance, with the return of the Quincy-Monticello 11th Episcopal District of the AME Church submitting a letter to the school board members.
Previously, the 11th Episcopal District had wanted to use the former school campus as a community center through which the district would provide an assortment of services and training for youth and adults alike.
There had been some disagreements between board members and the community, as the board members had been willing to offer the JES campus to the 11th Episcopal District for a rental fee that the community found disparagingly low.
However, that all came to a head on the evening of May 11, as Rev. Plummer, whose church is affiliated with the 11th Episcopal District, informed school board members that his group is no longer pursuing the school.
Rev. Plummer thanked the Jefferson County School Board for working with him and his organization on attempting to work out an agreement for the old JES/Mamie Scott Elementary school building.
But despite the board's willingness to work with the 11th Episcopal District, Rev. Plummer said that the contract between the two groups had not been agreed on by the district's governing heads.
When Rev. Plummer and others had presented the lease to their district for approval, the district issued concerns about things included inside the lease.
Those concerns were mentioned in Plummer's letter and ranged from the insurance responsibilities to the condition of the building following the vandalism and break-in last year.
“The proposal was rejected after a team looked at the terms and conditions,” the team, Rev. Plummer added, established that the contract would not be beneficial to the district and that the 11th Episcopal District may “incur losses” based upon the contract.
According to Rev. Plummer, the 11th Episcopal District had been required to obtain property insurance on the JES building, but this – Plummer said – was not the responsibility of the 11th Episcopal District (which would be leasing the building). It was the 11th Episcopal District's mindset, rather, that the school district (which owned the building) should be responsible for obtaining the proper insurance.
“The lessee should not be responsible for providing insurance for their property,” Rev. Plummer read from the letter from the 11th Episcopal District.
Additionally, the 11th Episcopal District was not in agreement on issues such as the contract's termination clause and the physical condition of the property.
“The Quincy-Monticello District is aware of the condition of the property,” the letter read. The vandalism of 2019 caused “significant structure damage” and the district felt it was unfair to be given the property without any repairs from the school district. The 11th Episcopal District felt as though the school district should have made repairs from the vandalism, rather than giving JES to the 11th Episcopal District on an “as-is” basis.
On top of the disagreements that the 11th Episcopal District had with the contract, they also addressed the fact that the services they aimed to provide were no longer lacking in the Monticello community.
The purpose of obtaining the JES campus, according to Rev. Plummer, was to establish and maintain a “close-knit self-sufficient community of youth and elderly who are physically, emotionally and psychologically healthy.”
“However, since our negotiation began, different agencies, schools, etc. have started to offer the very same services that we had proposed,” said Rev. Plummer. “Regretfully, due to the reasons listed, we were unable to execute the lease of the school district property.”
While this concluded the 11th Episcopal District's months-long pursuit of the old school building, Rev. Plummer was quick to add that this was not meant to create hard feelings between the two organizations.
“Thank you for giving us the opportunity,” concluded Rev. Plummer. “It is our hope that we will work together in the future.”
While this announcement disrupted the agreement that the school board had planned on, School Board Chairman Bill Brumfield noted that he and his board were thankful for Rev. Plummer's presentation to inform them of the 11th Episcopal District's withdrawal of interest.
“We appreciate you coming tonight and telling us that. If we can help you in the future, we will do our best to try. We understand what's going on and we appreciate you coming and letting us know,” said Brumfield. “We're going on good terms, and I appreciate that very much.”
This announcement left the school board without a concrete plan for moving forward with the JES building – but that was a problem quickly solved.
Also on the agenda for the evening school board meeting was a presentation from True Wisdom New Home Ministries.
During the 11th Episcopal District's interest in the JES building, True Wisdom New Hope had also expressed interest in obtaining the campus; but while the episcopal district had wished to rent it, True Wisdom New Hope had expressed an interest in purchasing the building.
During the May 11 school board meeting, True Wisdom New Hope submitted a letter of intent, offering to purchase the JES building for $140,000.
“This is not an owner finance offer. This is an outright sale offer,” the letter of intent read.
According to the letter of intent, True Wisdom New Hope Ministries will use the JES building to create Biblical Training Institute, provide a headquarter facility for the International Development Churches, Inc. and the school will house facilities to host conferences and ministry-wide seminars.
In addition to purchasing the school, the ministry's letter agreed that they would uphold and honor the arrangement that the school board had made to give the local VFW post a portion of the property; True Wisdom New Hope made it clear: if they purchase the building, VFW will be allowed to remain.
“It is considered an honor to be of service to our veteran community,” the letter stated.
With the offer from True Wisdom New Hope Ministries laying on the table before them, the school board decided to surplus the Jefferson Elementary School buildings and campus and then place the property up for bidded sale.
It was a unanimous decision, with every board member voting in support of surplussing and bidding out the JES property – albeit with the exception that any bidder must acknowledge that VFW Post 251 will remain on the property after the purchase.
The bids for the 24.3-acre lot of JES campus and land will start at $140,000.
Additionally, the school board also chose to surplus and bid out a small parcel of unused land that the school district owns on Boston Highway.
The bids for the 1.5-acre lot of district-owned land on Boston Highway will start at $7,500.