SAD 4 directors propose buying Guilford property

GUILFORD – SAD 4 residents will vote next week on the proposed purchase of a parcel of land and house at the school campus entrance on Blaine Avenue.

The Haley property, which consists of a house on four-tenths of an acre, is for sale and directors want to add the property to the campus to improve school safety. The school district’s land abuts the property on three sides.

The district has an option to purchase the property for $49,000. It is valued by the town at $75,800.

A districtwide vote on the proposal will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 18, at Piscataquis Community Middle School. An informational meeting will be held before the vote at 6:30 p.m.

All residents of Sangerville, Guilford, Abbot, Parkman, Wellington and Cambridge are asked to attend, but only those registered will be allowed to vote.

“The sole reason for the purchase is for safety,” SAD 4 Superintendent Paul Stearns said Wednesday.

Because of the slope of the land, water now pools at the campus entrance, he said. In addition, the house and the district’s fence around the property prohibit snow from being pushed back from the road, and the shadow of the house prevents ice from melting in that area, according to Stearns.

Stearns also said the crosswalk could be improved in the future. A bonus from the removal of the house would be the “nice, dramatic view” it would give of the school property.

If residents approve the purchase, Stearns said the Guilford Fire Department would burn the building at a cost of $500. The district would then contract with a construction firm to change the grade to divert the water from the driveway, reditch the property, fill the cellar hole, and seed and mulch the soil. He expects that cost will not exceed $6,000.

To pay for the property and work, Stearns said the district could use about $36,000 from the minor capital reserve account, along with building and maintenance and contingency funds.

Should the district ever disband or the school campus be closed in the future as part of a school consolidation effort, Stearns said the method of disposal of the property would be handled exactly as the district has handled other school properties in the past.

Directors on Tuesday also learned that SAD 4, along with SAD 48, had received a joint Rural Development grant of $399,817 through the U.S. Department of Agriculture to provide state-of-the-art telecommunications hardware and training for each of the schools in the two districts.

Following the lead of other school districts across the state, directors adopted a resolution that supports, recommends and advocates a citizen-initiated petition for a referendum to repeal mandated school consolidation.