Maple Leaf Buys Leesburg School; Will Move Corporate HQ
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By David [email protected]
By selling the old Leesburg Elementary School to Maple Leaf Farms, Warsaw Community Schools will be able to purchase 31-1/2 acres of bare land adjacent to Warsaw Community High School.
During the Warsaw School Board meeting Monday, the board unanimously approved selling the school at 101 E. Church St. to Maple Leaf Farms for $178,000. The Leesburg Lions Club will continue to use the baseball diamonds for at least the next five years. During those five years, Maple Leaf Farms will contribute $10,000 per year to a fund to help the Lions relocate the ball diamonds if they want to do that.
Since WCS does not need to demolish the old Leesburg school, it saves $125,000. With that savings and the money for the sale of Leesburg school, the board voted to buy the 31-1/2 acres from ShadyCrest Development Corp. for an amount not to exceed $310,000. Superintendent Dr. Craig Hintz will negotiate the price on behalf of the school board. The property is on the west side of Logan Street from CR 100S into a wooded area.
Chief Financial Officer Kevin Scott said, after the meeting, schools can't pay more than the joint appraisal of the property. The price the board is offering for the property is less than that amount.
The campus space, including the high school, Edgewood Middle School, administration building and Washington Elementary, is mostly filled except for a corner for a future junior varsity baseball field. By purchasing the acreage now, Scott said, it's a great opportunity to purchase adjacent space now for future needs.
Hintz said the Leesburg school has been vacated since the end of the 2009-10 school year. Money was budgeted to raze it if necessary. The school corporation had the property appraised, but the board wanted to find a buyer for it if possible for economic development. The board found a buyer in Maple Leaf Farms.
"I view this as a win-win for the school corporation, town of Leesburg, Plain Township, the Lions Club and our perspective buyer," Hintz said.
Lions Club representative Robert Bishop said he appreciated the board's effort to keep the ball fields for the community. With the proposal in front of them, Bishop "highly" recommended the board sell the property to Maple Leaf Farms.
Plain Township Trustee Jerry Kammerer said he also thought the sale was a great thing for the community.
Leesburg Town Council President Tom Moore said it's not very often, in the exchange of property in politics, can everyone walk out of the same room with a smile on their face. He said he appreciated the board's due diligence. Moore urged the board to accept the offer from Maple Leaf Farms.
Scott Tucker, one of the owners of Maple Leaf, said, "I'm just excited about the opportunity that is before us."
He said they were looking for options for additional office space. After his father mentioned the old school being sold, the Tuckers looked into it. The more they got to discussing the property with Hintz and Scott, and looking at the facilities, the more they were impressed with how it's been maintained and the opportunity it presented.
Tucker said the purchase is a significant source of money for the school corporation and avoids the iconic school from being demolished. He said they have no other plans for the ball diamonds beyond their current use.
"We're just excited," said Tucker. "Our business is excited to get started in this endeavor and be a bigger part of the community. We think it's a win-win-win for all the parties involved."
After the meeting, Tucker said the building will become Maple Leaf's world headquarters. Extensive physical modifications will be made to the building.
Currently, the business's headquarters are in Milford. Tucker said they have some office facilities there, but some older office facilities are dilapidated and Maple Leaf wants to provide better working environments for its staff.
Eighty employees will be moved to the Leesburg facilities.
"Thank your family for the offer," Dan Robinson, school board vice president, told Tucker.
Dan Metzger, board member, said, "I just want to personally thank you." He said Maple Leaf was making a generous offer because not only were they paying the asking price for the school, but also contributing $10,000 per year for the next five years to the Lions Club.
"I can't get over how generous of an offer this is," Metzger said.
"This really speaks of what you folks are about," said Kent Adams, board member. He said Maple Leaf Farms is a world leader and are doing something meaningful for the local community. "It's a great, great way to go."
"When so many counties are looking for businesses, for the Tuckers to stay in Kosciusko County, it's fabulous. ... You are a family to be praised," said John Elliott, a Winona Lake resident.
Robinson said there was a lot of discussion on the 31-1/2 acres during the facilities committee meeting. While they realize the timing is not great economically, a chance like this doesn't come up every day.
"We feel like with other things happening, we can make this happen, too," Robinson said.
Hintz said one possibility for the property would be to develop it into home building sites. The Building Trades class could build a home on the site each year. He said they could work with a real estate company to help market the properties.[[In-content Ad]]
By selling the old Leesburg Elementary School to Maple Leaf Farms, Warsaw Community Schools will be able to purchase 31-1/2 acres of bare land adjacent to Warsaw Community High School.
During the Warsaw School Board meeting Monday, the board unanimously approved selling the school at 101 E. Church St. to Maple Leaf Farms for $178,000. The Leesburg Lions Club will continue to use the baseball diamonds for at least the next five years. During those five years, Maple Leaf Farms will contribute $10,000 per year to a fund to help the Lions relocate the ball diamonds if they want to do that.
Since WCS does not need to demolish the old Leesburg school, it saves $125,000. With that savings and the money for the sale of Leesburg school, the board voted to buy the 31-1/2 acres from ShadyCrest Development Corp. for an amount not to exceed $310,000. Superintendent Dr. Craig Hintz will negotiate the price on behalf of the school board. The property is on the west side of Logan Street from CR 100S into a wooded area.
Chief Financial Officer Kevin Scott said, after the meeting, schools can't pay more than the joint appraisal of the property. The price the board is offering for the property is less than that amount.
The campus space, including the high school, Edgewood Middle School, administration building and Washington Elementary, is mostly filled except for a corner for a future junior varsity baseball field. By purchasing the acreage now, Scott said, it's a great opportunity to purchase adjacent space now for future needs.
Hintz said the Leesburg school has been vacated since the end of the 2009-10 school year. Money was budgeted to raze it if necessary. The school corporation had the property appraised, but the board wanted to find a buyer for it if possible for economic development. The board found a buyer in Maple Leaf Farms.
"I view this as a win-win for the school corporation, town of Leesburg, Plain Township, the Lions Club and our perspective buyer," Hintz said.
Lions Club representative Robert Bishop said he appreciated the board's effort to keep the ball fields for the community. With the proposal in front of them, Bishop "highly" recommended the board sell the property to Maple Leaf Farms.
Plain Township Trustee Jerry Kammerer said he also thought the sale was a great thing for the community.
Leesburg Town Council President Tom Moore said it's not very often, in the exchange of property in politics, can everyone walk out of the same room with a smile on their face. He said he appreciated the board's due diligence. Moore urged the board to accept the offer from Maple Leaf Farms.
Scott Tucker, one of the owners of Maple Leaf, said, "I'm just excited about the opportunity that is before us."
He said they were looking for options for additional office space. After his father mentioned the old school being sold, the Tuckers looked into it. The more they got to discussing the property with Hintz and Scott, and looking at the facilities, the more they were impressed with how it's been maintained and the opportunity it presented.
Tucker said the purchase is a significant source of money for the school corporation and avoids the iconic school from being demolished. He said they have no other plans for the ball diamonds beyond their current use.
"We're just excited," said Tucker. "Our business is excited to get started in this endeavor and be a bigger part of the community. We think it's a win-win-win for all the parties involved."
After the meeting, Tucker said the building will become Maple Leaf's world headquarters. Extensive physical modifications will be made to the building.
Currently, the business's headquarters are in Milford. Tucker said they have some office facilities there, but some older office facilities are dilapidated and Maple Leaf wants to provide better working environments for its staff.
Eighty employees will be moved to the Leesburg facilities.
"Thank your family for the offer," Dan Robinson, school board vice president, told Tucker.
Dan Metzger, board member, said, "I just want to personally thank you." He said Maple Leaf was making a generous offer because not only were they paying the asking price for the school, but also contributing $10,000 per year for the next five years to the Lions Club.
"I can't get over how generous of an offer this is," Metzger said.
"This really speaks of what you folks are about," said Kent Adams, board member. He said Maple Leaf Farms is a world leader and are doing something meaningful for the local community. "It's a great, great way to go."
"When so many counties are looking for businesses, for the Tuckers to stay in Kosciusko County, it's fabulous. ... You are a family to be praised," said John Elliott, a Winona Lake resident.
Robinson said there was a lot of discussion on the 31-1/2 acres during the facilities committee meeting. While they realize the timing is not great economically, a chance like this doesn't come up every day.
"We feel like with other things happening, we can make this happen, too," Robinson said.
Hintz said one possibility for the property would be to develop it into home building sites. The Building Trades class could build a home on the site each year. He said they could work with a real estate company to help market the properties.[[In-content Ad]]
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