Subject to a review of legal documents by its attorney, the Trenton R-9 Board of Education has tentative agreed to sell the former Adams Middle School building and property on which it sets to Trenton businessman Vance Cox.
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Subject to a review of legal documents by its attorney, the Trenton R-9 Board of Education has tentative agreed to sell the former Adams Middle School building and property on which it sets to Trenton businessman Vance Cox.
During a special meeting on Monday night, board members voted 7-0 to tentatively accept the offer made by Cox and his company, UTI Network, Inc. Cox proposes to renovate the school for offices and retail business, including the location of a restaurant in the area where the gymnasium is now located. In addition, a warehouse would be constructed at the rear of the existing building to house equipment used by UTI and its businesses as well as for a shipping area.
Under the proposal, UTI would purchase the property for $51,000 while putting in escrow a certificate of deposit of $250,000, which board members said basically satisfied its request of a bond to assure that if the building was sold, renovations for the facility would be completed. The account would be in the name of both Cox and the R-9 School District, with the money and all interest accrued being returned to Cox if at least 60 percent of the renovation worked planned for the existing AMS building is completed within a three-year timeframe. Cox indicated the project could possibly take only one and one-half years.
UTI would pay for all renovation costs, Cox said, with the property being leased back to the Green Hills Community Market Center as the managing company for the project. The center will be incorporated by UTI for management purposes. Cox listed members of the UTI board as himself, Daryl Ewing, Dale Bowe and Brian Wigfield.
In a telephone call with the board of education, Cox said an architectural firm from Oklahoma that he is using for the project has estimated the cost of the renovation to be over $2 million, with most of that money being spent in the area of the gymnasium and auditorium, which he said would be used for dinner theater and a multipurpose center for various activities. Preliminary estimates show projected costs to renovate shops and offices at around $5,000 each, depending on size and the added expense of bathroom facilities in some of the rooms. At least one elevator is also planned for the building.
Exterior work is estimated at around $40,000, not counting extras planned for the front court to be built. He said plumbing and electrical work is still being evaluated and will require state inspection before the true cost can be assessed. The architect is expected to have a finalized plan of the building use available within the next two weeks.
Cox noted that UTI will have its offices located in the building. UTI owns four companies that will operate out of the building – Tropical Illusions, Sun Splashin? USA, United Tech Securities Systems and United Tec Computer Solutions. An old-fashioned soda shop has also committed to being located there.
As part of the addition planned on the existing structure, Cox said it will have a full basement and contain the kitchen for the restaurant and dinner theater. He said the kitchen has been designed by the drafting department of Sysco Foods and will contain state of the art equipment with all the proper fire protection and ventilation built in at the time of construction.
Cox said the grill-type restaurant would have a sports theme, using memorabilia from local and area schools accumulated over the past 75 years.
In the proposal to the board, Cox said several parties have shown interest in locating in the building, asking about the cost and availability, which he said he felt ?was very competitive in what he was asking.? Cox said he plans to have a full-time activities director at the center.
The UTI proposal was one of two the R-9 Board received for the building. The original proposals had been received on Jan. 31, however, the board had agreed to give both UTI and Trenton AMS, LLC time to provide more information before a decision was made.
Trenton AMS, LLC also made a presentation to the board. Jerry Engleman, representing the group, said it had been decided to change its status to not-for-profit and that it had begun preliminary work on getting the building designated for the National Register of Historic Places. A representative of the state preservation office, Tiffany Patterson, explained the procedure in how a building is placed on the register and discussed the monies and tax credits that might be available for renovation of the building should it receive such designation. An article from the May 14, 1923 Republican-Times was also presented, which indicated that the cornerstone for the former AMS building was laid with a trowel purportedly to have been used by George Washington in the laying of the cornerstone of the capitol building at Washington D.C.
Engleman noted that the purchase offer of $50,001 made at the January meeting would remain the same and that the group would not be providing a performance bond, based on a letter it had received from an insurance company to which the group had made application for such a bond. The not-for-profit group that was to be formed, THS/TJC Memories, Inc., had five original/major investors listed, including Dr. and Mrs. J.A. Keuhn, Dr. and Mrs. Phil McClure, Dr. and Mrs. Nick McHargue, Mr. and Mrs. Colin Withers and Mr. and Mrs. Engleman. Five checks of $10,000 each were presented to the board for purchase of the property.
Engleman noted the group still planned to use the building as an antique and outlet mall with the auditorium to be available for entertainment and to rent to members of the community. The gymnasium uses included a possible arcade/video game area, organized dances, auctions or sports such as soccer, volleyball and basketball.