District 205 to eliminate minimum bid for Nielson School; bid process to resume in January

GALESBURG — Galesburg District 205 will eliminate the minimum bid for Nielson Elementary School and aim to restart the bidding process for the shuttered school in January.

The move comes after no bids were received for the property at the original minimum bid of $826,000 and a lowered bid of $735,000.

The elementary school, which was built in the 1970s on land donated by the Nielson family, closed last year as part of the district’s facilities plan, along with Gale Elementary.

The district is holding on to Gale for now.

Board members hope eliminating the minimum build will spur more interest and negotiations in the Nielson property.

“We can see what’s out there and turn it down if we don’t like it,” said board member Maury Lyon. “I think it has value, we just haven’t found the right person.”

District attorney Luke Feeney recommended eliminating the minimum bid.

“To get the ball rolling, I don’t think it’s a bad path moving forward,” Superintendent John Asplund said.

Bids will now reopen for the Nielson property on Jan. 26, 2022.

In other business, the board heard a presentation from Jennifer Hamm, Assistant Superintendent for Finance and Operations, on the upcoming year's tax levy.

Hamm said the district expects a reduction in the tax rate from 4.9% to 4.77% due to the district’s good financial position.

The board will be presented with a tax levy certificate for approval at the December board meeting.

This article originally appeared on Galesburg Register-Mail: District 205 to eliminate minimum bid for Nielson School