ELLSWORTH — Barring impediments that could arise on the state or local level, Ellsworth taxpayers will be asked to finance $250,000 next year to cover the cost of land for a new high school.

During a Monday evening session, Bruce Sawyer, superintendent of schools for Ellsworth, and Ken Shea, chairman of the Ellsworth School Committee, asked the Ellsworth City Council to support the committee’s efforts in acquiring the State Street property.

“As sites go, it is nearly ideal,” said Shea, emphasizing there would be no problem in gaining access to city sewer and water lines.

“One of the big selling features was the proximity to the existing high school, which would allow us to utilize the track complex as part of our future high school development,” Sawyer said, adding Ellsworth residents had made a major investment in the track facility .

Thomas MacDonald, a member of the Ellsworth School Committee, said the committee also found the purchase attractive due to the land’s proximity to the other existing city school properties.

The 69-acre parcel is owned by Charles Siondecine and located across the road from Western Avenue. The property has been valued by the city at about $85,000. The figure, however, does not represent fair market since much of the land is in tree growth. Sawyer said under the secured option agreement, the city would assume responsibility for $7,000 in deferred tax payments assessed to the seller for taking the property out of tree growth.

The agreement would essentially commit the city to waiving its collection of taxes that would have been received had the deal been struck with a private individual or corporation.

Sawyer said the school department would seek two independent appraisals of the property and possibly a third appraisal if the other two estimates differ by more than 25 percent of the selling price.

“It could be $250,000 or it could be less,” Sawyer told the council.

In response to some questions from Ellsworth City Councilor Roger Dow, school officials said the future of the construction project pivots on the continued practice of accepting students from the neighboring communities that form School Union 92.

Sawyer said of the 525 students at Ellsworth High School, 40 percent of the teen-agers are from towns other than Ellsworth. Representatives of School Union 92, who have no voting power on policies decided by the Ellsworth School Department, have explored the feasibility of constructing their own high school in the past.

“We’ve had very good support from the Union 92 towns on this venture. They play a key part in our school system,” Shea said. “I’ve pretty much been assured by those boards that if we were to get a new high school in Ellsworth — well, they’ve come out and said they wouldn’t be pursuing their application. That means that their students would continue to be a part of Ellsworth High School.”

Shea said in order for Ellsworth to have a viable educational facility, the city must maintain its size in the Class B range.

“If we dropped into the range of a couple of Class C high schools, there’s no way we could offer anywhere near as strong a program,” he said.

The Ellsworth School Department had been sending applications to the state Department of Education regarding school construction for the past five or six years. Sawyer said under state guidelines, the site acquisition expenses can be included in the school construction costs providing there is a need for a school site at the time of the town’s application.

“The department often encourages school districts that are in that stage of development to purchase a site prior to having the actual project approved,” Sawyer said. “We find ourselves in that particular type of situation.”

Based on its expectations for future enrollments, the school committee has submitted an application to the state for the construction of a new high school. The board withdrew $10,000 from its contingency fund to secure a one-year renewable option on the Siondecine property. The department should receive word from the state next month on the status of that construction application.

Sawyer said the state’s decision on the application for the construction of a new high school would have little bearing on the proposed land purchase.

“We know that sooner or later, we’re going to need a new school,” he said.

The school department is currently having a title search completed on the parcel and Sawyer said all other appropriate reviews — including that of the Department of Environmental Protection — would be completed prior to any approved purchase.

An abandoned rail line, now owned by the state Department of Transportation, divides the Siondecine parcel. Sawyers said the city would have to obtain DOT approval to construct a public railroad crossing on the high school access road — a process that could take several months. Under the plan, the access road would become an accepted city street, its construction costs paid under school construction expenses.

“The city of Ellsworth would have to petition the DOT to have a crossing,” Sawyer said. “There would have to be a public hearing as there are for similar types of crossings.”

The city would have to purchase the site, the superintendent said, because the school department is not empowered to take such action. Sawyer said the school department would secure all appropriate approvals and permits prior to recommendation of the purchase by the city.

“The most important key ingredient would be a local referendum on this issue which would have to be approved by the voters of the city of Ellsworth,” he said.