PORT ANGELES — The Port Angeles School Board will consider an $814,000 offer for the property that once was the site of Fairview Elementary School at a special meeting Thursday.
The board will meet at 4:30 p.m. in executive session at the Central Services Building, 216 E. Fourth St.
It will convene in open session at 5:30 p.m. to consider a decision on the offer from Kurt Jafay of Sequim, according to district documents.
The Fairview property is 9.48 acres at 166 Lake Farm Road east of Port Angeles. It includes a building, parking, playfields and a pond.
Fairview Elementary was closed in 2007 because of declining enrollment.
It was appraised at $904,000 in February 2013 and was placed on the market by the School Board in March 2013.
The appraisal, completed by Rick Wells of Silverdale, noted that the building had been vacant for years.
Reduced or deferred maintenance had resulted in peeling paint, a broken window, moss growth on shingles and vegetation on sidewalks, the driveway and roof surfaces, he said.
The school district has not been made aware of what Jafay intends to do with the property or whether he is making the offer for himself or on behalf of a client buyer, said Tina Smith-O’Hara, spokeswoman for the district.
Jafay is not expected to be at the meeting Thursday. James Alcaraz of Torres Real Estate in Sequim is expected to represent him, Smith-O’Hara said.
Plans not made public
Jafay could not be reached for comment on his plans for the property if purchase is completed.
Alcaraz declined to comment on his client’s plans for the property.
At least two private schools in the area have shown interest in the property and building: Five Acre School, located in Dungeness, and Olympic Christian School, currently split into two locations east and south of Port Angeles.
While Jafay has not revealed plans for the property, it is not believed Jafay is purchasing it on behalf of either private school, Smith-O’Hara said.
The main building was constructed in the 1960s and upgraded in 1973 and 1978.
The School Board decided to put the property on the market to help fund the replacement of other aging schools in the district.
A district committee is working on a proposal for a bond issue to place before voters to replace the 60-year-old Port Angeles High School.
At this time, no date or amount for the election question has been set, Smith-O’Hara said.
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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5070, or at arwyn.rice@peninsuladailynews.com.
