District 220's former headquarters going up for sale
Barrington Area Unit District 220's former administration headquarters is going up for sale to the highest bidder.
School board members Tuesday night approved a resolution authorizing the sale of the property at 310 E. James St. in the village for a minimum $900,000 through sealed bids. The 12,413-square-foot building is on a 1.5-acre site.
District 220 Assistant Superintendent of Business Services David Bein outlined for the school board a process that potentially could take a little more than a year if a winning bid surfaces.
Under Illinois school code, the first step will be publication of a notification the James Street property is for sale in a newspaper once a week for three consecutive weeks. It's projected the property will be awarded to the highest bidder Nov. 5, subject to the minimum $900,000 price.
If a tentative deal is struck, a buyer would have feasibility and approval periods before a possible closing date of Oct. 9, 2020.
"It's possible it could go a little longer if there was a request to have an extension added on," Bein said. "But it's also likely (a sale) could be shorter."
District 220's new administrative center is in the renovated 20,000-square-foot former PepsiCo Inc. building at 515 W. Main St. across from Barrington High School. It's the first academic season for the relocated central office.
PepsiCo's former Gatorade offices are expected to provide more space for administration employees in addition to room for large gatherings of educators for professional development and more parking, district officials said
The James Street building's lack of parking and work space were cited by district officials as two of its deficiencies.
School board President Penny Kazmier said a former longtime principal and Barrington High School graduate, Don Thompson, told her that District 220's central office was on James Street when the system was created in 1973. She said Thompson remembered working at the building as a custodian while in high school.