Aberdeen council approves purchase of former Presentation College nursing building

The City of Aberdeen council approved a purchase agreement July 7 to acquire the Presentation Sisters’ former Presentation College Southeast Nursing Building, a roughly 20,000-square-foot facility on the Presentation campus.

The sale agreement, approved after debate about how to fund the purchase, requires the sisters to remove remaining asbestos, install new boilers to replace a steam connection to the adjacent motherhouse and address interior flooring before legal transfer. The agreement also includes a restriction reserving the property north of the building for use as educational green space.

Why it matters: Council members and city staff said the building’s layout suits vocational or nursing instruction and could also be repurposed as a senior center or other city uses if an education partner does not occupy it. Supporters said buying the building would help restore educational programming to the campus and preserve public access to the site.

City Manager Robin told the council the building is “the most modern of the educational facilities in the Southeast part of campus” and that the sisters have offered the city a favorable price. Parks and Recreation Director Matt Braun, who inspected the building, told the council, “Overall it’s very good...flooring is really the only thing that we’ll need to do to make it ready to go.”

Robin and another staff member (Ron) outlined conditions included in the purchase agreement. Ron told the council the HVAC work is a “part of a condition of sale” and that the city would have oversight of that work while the sisters remain responsible for performing it prior to transfer.

Sister Mary, representing the Presentation Sisters, spoke in support of the sale and the campus partnership, saying it has “always been the hope of the sisters that in whatever way, shape or form that all people have access to the goods of the community.”

Funding debate: Council discussion centered on which city fund should cover the purchase. Mayor Shoneman described a promotional fund that has grown larger than intended after several years of positive returns and said, “right now we have about 5 or $600,000 in that fund,” and recommended using part of it for the purchase because the fund has been used previously for capital projects tied to community development. Several council members objected and moved to amend the motion to use a different city reserve; that amendment failed in a roll-call vote. The original motion to approve the purchase agreement then passed.

What the council decided: The council voted to approve the purchase agreement. Staff said they will finalize the signed documents with the sisters and continue efforts to recruit an education partner such as Southeast Tech while exploring other potential city uses.

What remains: The sale requires the sisters to complete the required asbestos abatement, flooring and boiler work before legal transfer, and the council and staff will oversee those conditions. The city and staff will continue outreach to Southeast Tech and other potential educational partners; no final operational plan for the building was adopted at the July 7 meeting.