The Great Bend USD 428 school board accepted an offer Wednesday from Gary Parr and Julie Sanders Parr of Parr Sound & Lighting to buy the former Central Kitchen at 2201 Broadway for $100,000. The property was appraised at $230,000 when bids were sought with that as a reserve price the district received no bids. Assistant Superintendent John Popp recommended accepting the offer.
“I don’t see any reason to not accept the contract,” Popp said.
The building is sold in “as is” condition, he noted. Other individuals looked at the property but thought it would cost too much to remodel for their purposes.
The Great Bend Tribune contacted Gary Parr, who said, “We are very excited about this. We have been looking for a location for a considerable amount of time and appreciate USD 428 for accepting our offer. Also, we would like to give our thanks and appreciation to Aaron and Diane at Mpire Real Estate for helping us with this every step of the way. We plan on moving Parr Sound & Lighting from our current location to Broadway. We love the fact that we will be downtown and we plan on giving the building somewhat of a facelift to continue to add to the beautification of our city.”
After completing the Support Services Building and the new District Education Center/Little Panthers Preschool, the board approved selling three buildings it no longer needed: the former Maintenance Building/Bus Barn at 2019 12th St., the former District Education Center at 201 S. Patton Road, and the former Central Kitchen at 2201 Broadway.
With this contract, the district has now sold its three surplus properties and expects the sales on each to be closed in mid-December.
Approval of Man Lift Purchase
The board also approved the purchase of a man lift for $13,174 from Equipment Share, based in Wichita. The maintenance department requested the purchase to replace an existing unit that is 17 years old. The current lift has aging hydraulics, a worn-out battery, and older outrigger sensors, Superintendent Khris Thexton said. The man lift is used regularly for tasks such as changing lights and maintaining facilities.
Contributions accepted
Great Bend High School Activities accepted two contributions from the Panther Booster Club with board approval.
• GBHS Girls Basketball received $2,837.67 for team apparel - Tops and bottoms
• GBHS Wrestling received $3,091.19 for team warmups and podium attire
Personnel report
Two resignations were accepted.
• Desteny Alcala, second-grade teacher at Park Elementary, will leave at the end of the year as she starts an in-home daycare service.
• Brandy Proffitt, seventh-grade teacher at Great Bend Middle School, will leave at the end of the semester. The board can charge a penalty for ending a contract early but Assistant Superintendent Popp said the board has a precedent of releasing teachers from contracts early in situations such as Proffitt’s; her husband has taken a job in another area and she wants to be with her family.
“It is consistent with history; we don’t want to break up families,” he said.
The board agreed to allow her to resign without accessing a penalty.
