Moses Lake School Board considers sale of land to Grant County
R. HANS MILLER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 2 years, 10 months AGO
The empty lot shown here north of West Valley Road in Moses Lake, near the fairgrounds, was bought by the Moses Lake School District in 2017. The district is now moving forward with selling it to Grant County after selecting a different site for a new campus.
Courtesy Google Maps
Managing Editor Rob Miller is a 4-year U.S. Army veteran who grew up in Western Montana in a community about the size of Soap Lake. An honors graduate of Texas State University, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Brandee, and their three dogs, Draco, Pepper and Cinnamon. He has one son, William. During his free time, he enjoys photography, video games, reading and working on the house he and his wife bought in Ephrata. He is passionate about the First Amendment and educating communities. | December 27, 2021 1:03 AM
The Moses Lake School Board approved moving forward with the potential sale of property located at the northwest corner of the intersection of West Valley Road and Paxson Drive during its Dec. 16 meeting.
“It’s basically being sold back to Grant County,” said Moses Lake School District COO Jeremy O’Neil. “We purchased it at a price of ($851,000), and the prior administration arranged a sale to Grant County at $1.2 million, so this resolution is the first step in the process.”
O’Neil said the next step in the process is to schedule a public hearing, which will be advertised prior to the event. Grant County commissioners will need to approve the purchase on their end. The process had been started in 2019, he said, but changes in state law related to governmental entities selling property to one another had caused a delay in selling the land. It had originally been purchased in anticipation of a school campus being placed there.
Grant County Central Services Director Tom Gaines said the county has been ready to move forward with the purchase of the land for some time. He added that changes to the administration at MLSD had led to delays.
“We’ve already held public meetings. We’ve already done a capital facilities (plan) and budget amendment. We stand ready to make that payment to the school district in the process, so it’s just kind of languished with the change in personnel,” Gaines said.
No response was received from Grant County officials regarding what the property may be used for.