NEENAH, Wis–The Neenah School Board rejects a second offer to buy the Shattuck Middle School site for redevelopment. The board met in closed session today (Thursday) to review the offer from Lakeside Development Company.
In a release from the district, board members claimed they were disappointed that Lakeside made its offer public to the media before they had a chance to review it. They also point out that Lakeside wanted to buy property that is not for sale and would not allow the district to keep its Health and Wellness Clinic in the Shattuck building.
The Neenah Joint School District Board of Education has rejected an
offer to purchase the Shattuck Middle School property from JG Special
Projects, LLC and Lakeside Development Company during a special closed
session meeting on April 5.
Several reasons and deficiencies were concluded by the Board members.
The offer, while $30,000 higher, includes portions of the property
that is not for sale, specifically the tennis courts and adjacent
parking lot. Therefore, the Lakeside offer was effectively not higher
than the Northpointe offer, as stated publicly by the company. The
Lakeside proposal also removed the District’s Health and Wellness
Clinic with no relocation plan or compensation for the District.
The Board was disappointed in Lakeside’s actions to release the plan
to the media prior to giving the Board an opportunity to review it.
There was also concern about Lakeside’s plan having changed since the
original proposal.
More broadly, rezoning would still be required in the plan Lakeside
presented. Lakeside’s proposal does not address the complaints of the
community, especially with regard to density, multifamily housing and
green space. Lastly, Lakeside’s plan does not address or align with
the goals of the City of Neenah’s 2040 comprehensive plan which calls
for a range of housing types for all income levels which the Board
considered as part of their deliberation.
The Neenah Joint School District currently has one accepted offer with
Northpointe Development. The attached chart is a comparison of the two
offers from Lakeside and Northpointe.
The Neenah School District still has a development agreement in place with Northpointe Development of Oshkosh. Northpointe’s initial application for rezoning of the property to allow for high-density housing on the site was rejected by the Neenah Common Council late last year. They have made some changes to the development plan and will apply for rezoning again.
