Onteora considers sale and use of former Phoenicia Elementary School – Daily Freeman
BOICEVILLE, NY – The Ontario School Board is considering the future of the former Phoenicia Elementary School after learning that the City of Shandaken will not purchase the building.
During a Board of Education meeting on Tuesday, Superintendent Victoria McLaren presented options that include either seeking public funding through another state agency or selling the property to get the best price.
“While (Shandaken officials) recognize that this site offers many positive aspects and opportunities for the city, they also believe there are too many challenges and conflicts,” she said.
However, school officials were asked in separate meetings by an Ulster County legislator and a representative of Patterns for Progress whether they would consider selling the property for use as public housing.
McLaren said such use would require a public vote.
“There is a 1979 opinion of the (state) auditor that clearly states that the provision of adequate, safe and sanitary housing at reasonable rents for low-income persons and families is expressly declared by the legislature to be a public use and a purpose for which public money may be spent,” she said. “It would require voter approval.”
The 32,500-square-foot building is located on a 4.8-acre lot at 11 School Lane, just off State Route 214. The property’s market value is estimated at $1.05 million, according to Ulster County.
“The board has to consider at that point whether we should put the property up for sale. Essentially, our duty would be to get the best price possible and we have virtually no authority to dictate what the property should be used for,” McLaren said.
Some board members were open to the possibility of using the site for residential purposes instead of large-scale projects in the sparsely populated residential area.
“The worst case scenario would be if a developer who doesn’t really care about millions of dollars still built luxury apartments or a hotel or something like that,” said Trustee Emily Mitchell-Marell. “That doesn’t help us with enrollment. It doesn’t help us with anything.”
Trustee Rick Knutsen suggested asking district attorneys whether board members had discretion in deciding whether to purchase the property.
“If it was a pesticide factory or affordable housing and the difference was only a dollar, no one would blame us,” he said.
Phoenicia Elementary School, which closed in late June due to declining enrollment, operated for 60 years and was most recently used for kindergarten through third grade. The district will have only two elementary school buildings next month as the district considers plans to close Woodstock Elementary School in four years.
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