Stokes: Seller rejects Carson City School District’s initial offer on Capital Christian property

The Carson City School District’s original offer on the former Capital Christian property at 1600 Snyder Ave., was rejected by the seller and the letter of intent had expired on July 8, Superintendent Richard Stokes reported to the Board of Trustees at Tuesday’s meeting. Stokes, in his update on next steps regarding the property, said he had received new information from real estate agent John Uhart, representing the district in the sale. Uhart said the seller rejected the district’s original $5.5 million offer and presented a counterproposal with several key changes, notably a $170,000 increase for a total of $5,670,000 to cover the agent’s commission fees. Also, the district initially proposed that $50,000 would be used for earnest money and it would refundable if the district elected not to go through the sale. The language in the counterproposal was changed to reflect that $25,000 would be distributed to the seller and it would be nonrefundable. One other major change, Stokes reported to the board, included reducing the district’s previously allowed 90 days to conduct necessary environmental and health inspections and assessments down to 30 days. Finally, the new letter of intent would expire July 18, and if the district chose not to act, the entire transaction would become null and void, Stokes said. “I don’t think we should look at this as the end of the world,” he said, noting there could be opportunities to involve the public in the process with special meetings and seeking transparency. But the board expressed discomfort in getting the entire process complete in 30 days, let alone having to get all the necessary inspections required in the original 90 days. “I don’t find these terms favorable,” Trustee Mike Walker said. “I’m not in agreement with this.” Since the June 25 meeting, when Stokes first brought forward the Capital Christian site to consider a purchase, he had contacted an appraiser and compiled a list of school officials and citizens to make recommendations on the campus’ functionality and best purpose. In general, however, there was no appetite from the board to proceed with the counterproposal, and school district counsel Mike Pavlakis recommended not proceeding with a special meeting for now. The board’s next scheduled meeting is July 23 and the letter of intent expires July 18. After the presentation, Stokes said the rationale for the rejection of the offer remained unclear. “Obviously, I think they (the seller) didn’t want to be saddled with the commission for the real estate agent, which we had specifically written in the letter of intent that it was going to be seller’s responsibility,” he said. But he added that he appreciated the board’s feedback and would use it to determine his next steps.