New purchase offer for Patterson school accepted on Monday

Patterson Elementary School

By David Panian

TECUMSEH — A new buyer has come forward to purchase the Patterson school building in Tecumseh.

At its meeting Monday, the Tecumseh Board of Education voted 6-0 to approve a purchase agreement for $150,000 with Patterson 1953 LLC, which is registered to Tecumseh businessman Dan Meikle.

Superintendent Matt Hilton said the agreement calls for the sale to close by Sept. 30. If the sale goes through, the property will be sold as is with it then being leased back to the school district for one year for $1 with the district being responsible for maintaining and insuring the property.

Meikle intends to build homes on the property that fit the historic nature of the neighborhood and convert the school building into apartments, Hilton said.

Meikle was at the meeting but declined to comment on his plans before the sale closes.

This is the second time the board has approved a purchase agreement for Patterson. In April, two local developers offered to buy both Patterson and the Herrick Park school for $150,000 each, but withdrew their offers after learning from city officials that rezoning the properties could be difficult.

Both properties are zoned for low-density, single-family housing, but some recent changes to the zoning ordinance related to planned residential developments could make converting the school building into apartments possible.

Hilton called the proposal beneficial to the city and district, where the city gains more housing and the district potentially gains enrollment from families that may move into the new homes.

The lease concept came about through discussions that “were supportive of a thoughtful project and a thoughtful use of Patterson Elementary School that benefits certainly us but certainly will bring a large number of benefits to the community,” Hilton said.

The year lease can be viewed as a partnership to allow for developing a plan that benefits the district and city, Hilton said.

Both Meikle’s legal counsel and the district’s law firm have signed off on the agreement, he said.

There are no provisions that would address a situation like what has happened with the former administration building on North Ottawa Street where it was sold but the buyer, who originally planned to convert the building to apartments, has since put the building back on the market.

Meikle has “invested a tremendous amount of time and effort into this project over the last three to four months where anything can happen, but I believe the investment and the intent is set,” Hilton said.

In other businessAt Monday’s meeting, the school board also:

• Heard presentations on Tecumseh High School being ranked in the top 7% of school districts in Michigan by U.S. News & World Report, the first week of school, the Link Crew at the high school and high school art teacher Jackie Whiteley being named secondary art teacher of the year by the Michigan Art Education Association. The Link Crew is a group of 53 10th, 11th and 12th grade students who mentor first-year students.

• Heard the monthly finance report as well as reports from the budget and safety, building and grounds committees and from student board liaison Tucker Cole.

• Continued discussion about possibly updating the board’s norms about how the board members interact with each other, the administration and faculty, and the community.

• Heard an update on the implementation of the strategic plan, including goals set by each department.