The school district could decide on the future of the old Incline K-2 elementary school property as early as January after property appraisals were finalized last week.
The Washoe County School District received a pair of appraisals from multiple real estate firms on the Southwood Boulevard site, based on whether the 40-year-old building is demolished. Details are as follows:
• Appraisal No. 1: Valued at $3.7 million to $4.6 million with the school still standing, a buyer would need to pay an additional $10 million over the next decade to renovate the more than 40-year-old building to meet code, school district officials have said. Other considerations for the building include the fact it sits on a fault line, and district officials have said the property would need seismic retrofits.
• Appraisal No. 2: The clean property — which would require the school district to perform asbestos abatement work and demolish the site — is valued between $4.6 million and $5.5 million.
“The extra cost is basically for the work we'd have to do,” said Mike Boster, school planner for the district's capital improvement department, regarding the near $1 million difference.
What's next
An action item on what to do with the site is scheduled for one of the Washoe County School Board's January meetings, scheduled for the Jan. 12 and 26 in Reno. The board may sell the property, give it away to a group who plans to use it for community uses only or lease it for community use, according to state law.
The school ceased operations this fall, as all elementary students in Incline Village moved to the renovated Incline Elementary School on Northwood Boulevard. Since, both community and Washoe County School District officials have weighed options for the property.
In a previous interview, Washoe Schools Trustee Dan Carne said he'd lean toward selling the property for the good of the school district as a whole. Boster said the capital improvement department's suggestion to the board would be to sell the property.
At a pair of meetings this year on the property's future, held at The Chateau, residents suggested using the site as a community center or park.
Bill Horn, general manager of the Incline Village General Improvement District, talked about the possibility of partnering with community organizations on the site for a community center with office space. His plan is contingent, though, on the district gifting the property.
We're not going to buy the property,” Horn said. “We're just going to wait with the plan I've presented to them in the event they can't sell the property.”
