Old ADM School Out of Running as Site to House County Offices

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From a Dallas County news release:

The Adel-DeSoto-Minburn school district's discussions to re-purpose the former Adel Middle School "bring an end, once and for all" to any suggestions that it could house a proposed county administration facility, two members of the Dallas County Board of Supervisors said this week.

Dallas County voters will decide Aug. 6 whether to spend $16.85 million toward the cost of building a county administration and law enforcement facility. Leaders estimate the project will cost $22 million for a county administration, jail and jail administration facility. And pay for work to re-purpose current county offices at 902 Court, 907 Court, 810 Court and 201 Nile Kinnick.

"It is very important for the public to understand in advance of the Aug. 6 public referendum that the former middle school is not an option. Frankly, it never has been a viable option but there has been a small, vocal group that continued to suggest it was," Supervisor Mark Hanson said in the release. "To be clear, the school district never offered it to the county, we knew it was an impractical location in terms of parking and its impact on the neighborhood, and the building itself was unsuitable."

Hanson and fellow supervisor Brad Golightly praised the school board for indicating it is now considering moving the district office from the high school to the now-empty middle school location.

"We have said all along that the building was the school district's property and was best suited for educational purposes," Golightly said. "Clearly, their actions should bring an end, once and for all, to any claims about its viability as a county site. It would have added costs for demolition and street improvements and we still would have had to build the public safety facility on a separate site."

Golightly added, "This latest development is another indication that the county's eight-year process to identify its space needs and select the best possible location is right on the mark in recommending the county-owned east Adel site on Highway 6."

Officials encouraged the public to attend a final public information meeting in Adel at 7 p.m. Tuesday, July 30. The Adel meeting will be at the Board of Supervisors meeting room, 902 Court St., Adel.

Additional information about the proposed administrative and public safety facility is available at www.dallascountyfuture.com.