- November 1, 2024
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The Flagler County School Board has received an inquiry from someone interested in buying a 20-acre parcel of vacant school district land off Oceanshore Boulevard fronting the Intracoastal.
The land is just north of Jungle Hut Road, and is listed on the Flagler County Property Appraisers Office website as having an assessed value of $335,000.
"For me personally, I'm not leaning toward selling it. I think that selling the oceanfront property was a huge mistake, and that should have become a science center."
— COLLEEN CONKLIN, School Board member
In a School Board workshop Oct. 2, School Board attorney Kristy Gavin told the board about her discussions with the potential buyer, without revealing the individual's name.
She told the board that the man had told her that he'd had several real estate agents express interest in representing him in the potential deal, and that she'd replied to him that securing a real estate agent would be premature, since the board had not decide if it would be willing to sell the property.
The board doesn't have immediate plans for the land, so determining whether or not to sell it involves determining whether or not it might be useful for some future district need, like a future school location.
The land was deeded to the school district from ITT in 1984, Gavin said. The district received the land at the same time as two other parcels in the area: a 15-acre one that houses the adult education center, and a 5-acre parcel the board sold in 2006.
If the district does decide it's interested in selling the building, Gavin said, the county government, under the agreement through which the school district received the land, would have the right of first refusal.
The land has some limitations: The area that would be needed for a driveway is swampy, and the parcel doesn't have water and sewer. It's also in a flood zone, and would therefore require flood insurance if the district, or anyone else, decided to build something on it.
"I guess then bottom line of it all is, is it a parcel that we possibly could build a small school on?" School Board member Colleen Conklin said. "We have nothing on that side of the bridge. I think one of the biggest mistakes we made was selling the oceanfront property; I hate the idea of selling the property on the river. But I understand, if it can't be used for some sort of educational purpose. For me personally, I'm not leaning toward selling it. I think that selling the oceanfront property was a huge mistake, and that should have become a science center."
Board member Maria Barbosa suggested the board table the matter until the district administration can provide more information about the property.
Board member Trevor Tucker thought Conklin's questions about whether or not the parcel could be used for a small school such as a lab school were premature.
"Are we going to use this property in the future: Yes, our no," Tucker said. "That's it."
"I just think we need to be open to what the possibilities are," Conklin said. "It may be that a school cannot be built on it — a lab school or otherwise. ... Part of the question is how much of it is even buildable."
The board requested that district staff provide board members with that information so that the board can consider the matter in the future.
