Andy Sanchez, an art center representative, asked the Board of County Commissioners on July 31 to transfer title of the Rojas Building to the art center. “What we're looking to do is ask the county to grant the title to the Rojas Building to the art center,” Sanchez said, describing a plan to renovate the site for a school of dance and secure storage for the center’s van.

The art center said it would invest about $250,000 to bring the one‑story masonry building back into service and use most of the space for dance instruction. Sanchez said the center now serves more than 200 students and has “room for 50 plus students” waiting for classes. He also said the center paid roughly $10,000 to fix its van after vandalism and wants a safer garage area on the site.

The request connects to earlier campus projects. Sanchez said the Rojas property was originally purchased by the county in December 2022 to support improvements at the Jackson Conference Center, including a planned ADA elevator and bathroom renovations that he estimated could exceed $2.5 million. A commissioner also referred to an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) that granted $2,000,000 to the campus and said that document showed the Rojas property was intended to support the art center campus.

Commissioners pressed for implementation details including maintenance responsibilities, utilities and timelines. Sanchez said asbestos remediation already was completed and that the art center had contributed funds toward that work. Commissioners expressed general support for finding a use for the vacant building and said they expected to reach a decision on next steps by the end of the following week.

Discussion points included the property’s condition and its role as a gateway to Pueblo’s East Side, the art center’s fundraising capacity and stewardship pledge, and how any deed transfer would interact with the art center’s existing tenancy of county property on the same campus. Commissioners asked county staff to clarify whether deed transfer would remove the parcel from county ownership; county staff said that deeding the Rojas parcel would transfer ownership to the grantee.

There was no formal motion or vote during the work session. Commissioners asked staff and the art center to continue negotiations and provide information needed to finalize terms, and they signaled an intent to decide on next steps by the end of next week.

If the county transfers title, the art center said it plans roughly eight months of renovation work before occupancy and will coordinate utilities and any remaining hookups with county staff during construction.

The request also included a public pledge from the art center to remain willing to work with city or county leaders if a future public use better served the community.