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Beloit board approves Century 21-affiliated realtor to list two school buildings and lease operations site
Summary
After a committee recommendation, the full Beloit School District Board voted 4-3 to approve a Century 21-affiliated firm to handle the sale of the McNeil and Wright buildings and to lease the district operations building; board members raised questions about marketing costs, commission language and deed restrictions.
The Beloit School District Board of Education voted 4-3 on April 1 to approve a Century 21-affiliated realtor to list two district properties for sale and to lease a third property.
The motion, made by Megan Miller and seconded by Brian Nichols, authorizes Century 21-affiliated to list the McNeil building at 1524 Frederick Street and the Wright building at 1033 Woodward Avenue for sale and to handle leasing of the operations building at 1430 Fourth Street. The motion carried on a roll call: Megan Miller, yes; Tom Hankins, no; Brian Anderson, yes; Brian Nichols, yes; Amy Levy, no; Greg Schneider, yes; Tia Johnson, no.
The recommendation came to the full board from the Business Operations and Finance Committee, which met earlier and unanimously recommended Century 21-affiliated after reviewing responses to a public request for proposals (RFP). The administration said three proposals were received (Century 21, Boyd Auction/Beloit Auction Realty, and REMAX); REMAX missed the RFP deadline by 36 minutes and therefore was not advanced for consideration under the RFP rubric.
Board members and district staff said the district issued the RFP to invite more local bidders and to formalize a selection process. Superintendent Dr. Garrison and facilities staff described the screening process and site visits conducted for prospective firms. Tommy Bridal, the district’s director of facilities, and district staff accompanied potential bidders on property walk-throughs.
Several board members expressed substantive questions before the vote. Amy Levy asked whether a marketing budget was included in the Century 21 proposal; administration said Century 21’s RFP did not include a separate marketing line and that the district would clarify whether marketing costs would be covered by the firm or negotiated as an additional item in the contract. Levy also sought clarification on Century 21’s commission language for leases and purchases, asking whether commission calculations would be based on total lease value and how ‘‘due and payable’’ and closing deadlines would be interpreted; administration said those contract details remain to be finalized and would be clarified with the selected firm.
Other trustees and staff raised local-history and community-protection questions. Facilities staff noted past deed restrictions on district properties (cited from a previous sale of Lincoln Junior High in the late 1980s/early 1990s) and said deed restrictions intended to protect public-interest uses should be considered during negotiations. Trustees also urged the district and the selected realtor to coordinate with city economic-development contacts to maximize local interest, particularly for the McNeil property.
Board members discussed Boyd Auction’s historical relationship with the district and noted that Boyd Auction has managed recent surplus-auction work for the district, but committee members favored the commercial-real-estate expertise of Century 21 for listing and sales tasks.
Administration said the board’s approval tonight authorizes the district to proceed with Century 21-affiliated as the listing/leasing partner; a final listing agreement and contract terms (including commission, marketing budget, and any deed restrictions) will be negotiated and returned to the board for ratification or further action as required.
Concerns recorded on the record included (1) the absence of a clearly specified marketing budget in Century 21’s proposal, (2) ambiguous commission wording for leases and purchases in the RFP responses that administration said they would clarify, and (3) trustee requests that the district ensure protections (deed restrictions or development covenants) that preserve community interests. Trustees also asked that any lease of the operations building be considered in the context of a districtwide buildings strategy before long-term commitments are executed.
Next steps: administration will (a) confirm with Century 21 how marketing costs will be handled and seek clearer contract language about commission timing and calculation, (b) incorporate deed-restriction options in negotiations where appropriate, and (c) return a draft listing/lease agreement to the board for approval as required.
