St. Albans tabled $1-per-year McKinley Middle School lease, council seeks insurance guarantees

The St. Albans City Council voted Nov. 17 to postpone consideration of a proposed lease of the former McKinley Middle School to allow the city to resolve insurance and indemnity issues with its carriers and the Kanawha County Board of Education.

Mayor (name not specified in the transcript) introduced the lease proposal, saying the county board was willing to lease the property to the city for $1 per year and that the city would have access to the gym, bathrooms, locker rooms, football field, tennis courts and walking track. "They're willing to lease this to us for a dollar a year," the mayor said during the presentation.

City attorney Mike DelDucis cautioned council members that the draft lease requires the city to indemnify the Board of Education. He advised confirming whether the city’s commercial general liability policy would extend coverage to the board as an additional insured and whether the carriers (named in discussion as JR Marshall and the carriers Travelers/Westfield) would agree to the requested protections. “The insurance is pretty serious…I look at a basketball grid coming down and hurting a kid. They’re gonna sue us. They’re gonna sue the board of education. We need to make sure we are protected,” DelDucis said.

Council members discussed operational details, including which interior spaces the lease would guarantee, short-term subletting for events (which would require board consent under the draft), and a proposed trade in which the Board of Education would cover utilities if the city maintained the grounds at Wymer and McKinley. The mayor suggested staff would work on a hold-harmless agreement for renters of the gymnasium and require event-specific insurance riders for large public events.

Given those open issues, a council member moved to postpone the lease to the first council meeting in December to give staff and counsel time to confirm insurance coverage, clarify premises, and finalize contract language. The motion was seconded and passed by voice vote.

The decision delays any formal lease execution until the city and the Board of Education resolve indemnity and insurance questions and agree on final contract terms. Council members said they expect staff and the city attorney to return with recommended contract edits and information about potential additional cost for an insurance rider or policy extension.