South Bend schools looking to sell downtown building to the city for $2.8 million

SOUTH BEND — The South Bend school board took the first step Monday night toward negotiating a sale of its downtown administration building to the city.

The city of South Bend is looking to move its offices from their current site, in the County-City Building on West Jefferson Blvd. The school district, meanwhile, is looking to move its offices to the Brown Community Learning Center on Beale Street.

The school board voted 5-2 in favor of a resolution allowing Kareemah Fowler, assistant superintendent of business and finance, to notify the Indiana Attorney General of the district's intention to the sell its downtown building.

The 59,000-square-foot building houses administrative offices and the school board meeting room.

Graduation 2022: South Bend announces plans for spring commencement

A state law that took effect last June requires school boards to seek certification from the attorney general before selling a building. If the state grants approval, Fowler can begin negotiating a purchase agreement.

The city currently occupies nearly 37,000 square feet of space on the top three floors of the County-City Building. It is interested in moving and using all six floors of the South Bend schools' administration building, at 215 South Dr. Martin Luther King Blvd.

"For the city of South Bend, it presents an opportunity to consolidate some spaces, some offices and make sure that that space is still being utilized for a good purpose," city spokesman Caleb Bauer said. "We applaud (the district) for thinking creatively in how they can reduce overhead without impacting classrooms."

Bauer said financial considerations for the purchase are still being negotiated and that he couldn't share a potential price.

South Bend district eyes cost savings

A study commissioned by South Bend schools in 2020 estimated the district could bring in between $2.5 million to $3 million in a sale of the administration center.

In a presentation Monday night, Fowler said the city has offered the South Bend district $2.8 million for the building.

Discussion of the sale comes as the school district continues to evaluate its facilities and looks for cuts to make up for declining enrollment and property tax caps. The district has closed or repurposed seven school buildings since 2018.

"This is one of the few buildings we can sell and produce a profit," Fowler said of the administration center.

She said discussions of a sale began with the city in early 2021.

Fowler projected that the school district — in profits from the sale and savings in maintenance and operations — could direct more than $5 million back into classrooms over the next decade.

South Bend school administrators say they anticipate moving out of the administration center sometime in late 2022.

The school board president, John Anella, said the prospective sale is symbolic, as the district looks to shed itself of a building that many residents think represents "excess and waste."

"We have underutilized buildings and we'd save millions of dollars over 10 years and we would continue our emphasis on spending money on people in the classroom and not on things," Anella said. "In the end, it comes down to this: Is it better to move the superintendent out of his beautiful office or close another school?"

Future plans for administration

The school district purchased its headquarters in October 2004 for $600,000. The district bought the building, formerly the Century Building, from the city's Department of Redevelopment and made $7.6 million in renovations after its purchase, The Tribune reported in 2019.

The school corporation conducted a feasibility study in mid-2021 to consider a new home for its administrative services, Fowler said.

Administrators decided the Brown Community Learning Center would best serve the district's needs in size, parking and other amenities, with a chance to combine administrative and family services currently offered at Brown in one location.

Saturday Accelerator: South Bend combats learning loss at Brown center

Other buildings, including vacant structures and Washington High School, which is not at full capacity, were studied but would have required more costly additions, Fowler said.

Moving administrators into the 163,600-square-foot Brown building wouldn't require any expansion and would allow for more flexible office space, Fowler said.

Fowler told The Tribune after Monday night's meeting that she anticipates renovations at the Brown building to cost about $3.1 million. On Tuesday , a spokeswoman for the district said moving costs would actually be $2.1 million.

Board member Oletha Jones was critical of the move, likening it to the district's decision about 15 years ago to move downtown. Jones said she hoped the district would have been more transparent with its intention to move to Brown.

"There's going to be a lot of people that are going to have a difficult time getting on that side of town, just like where we're located now," Jones said. "It was criticized back then when the superintendent purchased it for various reasons, and now I think we're making another mistake by attempting to relocate at Brown school."

The school corporation and city hope to hear back from the attorney general's office within 30 days, at which point they can start work to formalize a purchase agreement.

Several officials from the city released statements in support of a potential sale, including Mayor James Mueller and City Controller Dan Parker.

"The prospect of moving city offices to the current SBCSC Administration Building is a great example of governments working together to gain efficiencies and reduce costs for all involved," Parker said in a release.

Email South Bend Tribune education reporter Carley Lanich at clanich@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter: @carleylanich.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: South Bend, SBCSC work on administration building sale