A house in Gas constructed by Iola High School building trades students will be occupied soon, after having sat vacant more than a year.
USD 257 board members agreed Monday night to rent the house to Bill Peeper, new social studies instructor, for $350 a month with the condition that he eventually purchase it. The Peeper family will move here from Cherokee, where he taught previously, and he asked the rent concession until his house in Cherokee sells.
Peeper’s bid, being held in abeyance, was $85,000, $900 less than what the district figured it cost for construction.
Board Member Buck Quincy dismissed a concern about whether the rental agreement might set a precedent that could haunt the district later by observing that if such a scenario arose again it should be decided on its merits.
The district’s most recently constructed house, in the Cedarbrook Addition, will be put on the market with a minimum bid of $92,000, about $250 more than its anticipated cost; some exterior concrete work remains to be done.
A decision on what to have building trades students do during the upcoming year will be decided later.
Projects discussed last night included construction of a central office for the district, remodeling of existing houses and partnering with a non-profit, such as Homes of Iola or Hope Unlimited, to build a house or remodel one.
Dr. Craig Neuenswander, superintendent of schools, said remodeling might leave students with time on their hands, and also noted that with the house in Gas apparently sold that left just the Cedarbrook home unsold.
“That’s occurred a number of times in the past,” he said, having a home on the market while another is being constructed. “The board might consider building another home this year, as usual.”
Quincy said that would be his preference, to “give the kids an opportunity to build a house,” and learn the intricacies of such construction.
A LOT at 802 N. Buckeye is back in the district’s lap.
In a note to board members, Richard Huston withdrew his bid of $1,227 for the lot, accepted two weeks ago. Huston said other financial commitments precluded his purchase of the lot.
Board members did not say what they would do with the lot and whether it would be offered again for sale.
