Toledo tables discussion of relocating district offices

The Toledo School Board has postponed a decision to move their main offices to the Toledo Tel building on Ramsey Way in order to gather more information about costs to keep their current office open.

Discussed during the board's Jan. 22 meeting, Toledo Tel and the district had begun speaking in recent months about the possibility of relocating the district's offices, which are currently on N 5th St. across from Toledo Middle School, to Ramsey Way after Toledo Tel moved their administrative office to their facility on Plomondon Rd.

Toledo Tel continues to use portions of their Ramsey Way building, as certain fixtures could not be moved, and on Jan. 22 the board was informed of an offer of $500 per month to use the reminder of the facility, with utilities included in such a fee.

"I look at it as an opportunity," said Board Member Jerad Buswell of the offer. "It's a great place, I think, for the District Office."

While the board was generally receptive to the idea of relocating, especially as Toledo Tel's building is designed specifically for administrative purposes, they also wanted to know how $500 per month would compare to their current costs before they accept the offer.

Such figures were not readily available for the board that night, but Superintendent Sharon Bower said she could have them prepared by the board's next meeting on Feb. 19, adding her only concern about delaying action would be to make sure the board reaches a decision in time to have such details worked out before a new superintendent begins serving this summer.

"There is no rush," she said of tabling their decision, in the sense Toledo Tel has not given them a deadline by which to choose.

Bower has called the potential move to the Toledo Tel building a "win-win-win" for parties involved, stating district administrators would have additional space to work with, Toledo Tel would have a long-term tenant in an otherwise-unused portion of their building, and the Cowlitz Prairie Academy, an alternative education program currently sharing office space with the district, would have more room for their students.

When asked if Cowlitz Prairie Academy would bear the burden for utilities at the 5th St. building should the district move their offices, Bower said such an expectation is not currently included in their contract with Taking Charge, the company operating the program, and said utility payments, if any, would have to be negotiated when their contract is up for renewal.