KELLOGG — Discussions between the city of Kellogg and the Kellogg School District over the future of the empty wings of the district's Administrative Annex building will move forward after the school board approved a memorandum of understanding with the city. 

The MOU, which the Kellogg City Council approved last month, allows the city to enter a research phase to evaluate the 54-year-old building as a potential new city hall and explore a reasonable deal with the district. If the two sides reach an agreement, all municipal services currently housed at City Hall would move into the building. 

City offices have been located at 1007 McKinley Ave. for more than 20 years in a former Bunker Hill Mine warehouse that the city bought and heavily renovated in the mid-2000s. According to City Councilman Terry Douglas, the Bunker Hill Mining Co., which recently resumed production, leases the west end of the facility for its executive offices and holds an option to buy the entire property before the agreement expires in 2029. 

The Kellogg School Board held two meetings Tuesday evening: a facilities maintenance workshop followed by its regular monthly meeting. While the city's potential use of the annex came up during both sessions, the board took no specific action beyond approving the MOU. 

"Reading that MOU, it makes sense that you guys need to start your research," board Chair Alexa Griffin said. 

Community concerns and enrollment capacity 

When news of a potential deal with the city surfaced, several community members voiced complaints over using a school building for anything other than its intended purpose, with claims of overcrowding in current district schools among the most common concerns. 

Superintendent Lance Pearson said the district is not experiencing overcrowding, noting that Canyon Elementary School is the only building near capacity due to open enrollment for district families. 

"Our building capacity is operating where it should be," Pearson said. "We're comfortable with where we're at." 

Pearson shared enrollment figures showing Canyon Elementary and Pinehurst Elementary sit at roughly 140 and fewer than 400 students, respectively, for grades K-5. He said those numbers, particularly at Pinehurst, align with state averages. 

Kellogg Middle School, which previously operated as an elementary school, serves 250 students with a capacity of 315. Kellogg High School, which underwent a major expansion in the early 2000s, enrolls 300 students and can accommodate about 700. Pearson acknowledged that a few elementary classes are large, but because they are bookended by smaller cohorts, none will push the schools past their capacity limits. 

History of the Administrative Annex 

The Administrative Annex was built in 1972 and still houses key district operations on its eastern wings, including back-office staff, the technology department, preschool programs, and middle school band and physical education classes. 

The city is eyeing the abandoned academic wings that make up the building's western half. That section has sat empty for nearly a decade following a 2017 decision to move middle school students into the former Sunnyside Elementary building and consolidate Sunnyside and Pinehurst Elementary in Pinehurst. Today, the district enrolls 70 fewer students than it did in 2017. 

Failing infrastructure, mounting costs and declining enrollment drove the 2017 consolidation, and the empty wings remained standing because demolition costs exceeded the district's budget. 

Maintenance funds and timeline 

Tuesday's workshop also covered maintenance plans for the district's other facilities. Pearson noted that House Bill 521, passed by the Idaho Legislature in 2024, created the $1 billion School Modernization and Facilities Fund. 

"What the state said was we're going to give you maintenance money now, but you have to develop a 10-year plan to modernize your schools," Pearson said. 

The district currently holds roughly $4.4 million in that fund, generating about $16,000 a month in interest. 

"We've been spending the interest and getting quite a bit done," Pearson said.