Trustees OK buying land to prevent its annexation

The three sites combined sold for $440,500.
By PETER H. MILLIKEN
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
LEAVITTSBURG -- The LaBrae Board of Education has accepted Warren Township trustees' offer to buy the former LaBrae High School site -- one of three former school properties the board offered for sale.
Trustees voted Monday to buy 10 acres at the high school site, 4651 W. Market St., for $175,000, causing that parcel to be removed from Tuesday evening's land auction.
Trustees bought the former high school property because they wanted to prevent it from being annexed out of the township into the City of Warren, said Trustee Terry Ambrose. The former school site abuts Warren city limits.
"This board aggressively opposes any annexation from our township. We don't want to lose land, and we don't want to lose tax base," Ambrose said. The township may use the former school land to build a new fire station or police and fire complex, Ambrose added.
Trustees asked that the stadium and its lights, concession stands and bleachers be kept intact at the former high school site, said Ron Joseph, superintendent.
Sites auctioned off
Two other sites were sold in a public auction Tuesday evening: the former Leavitt Elementary School at 4555 Risher Road, Leavittsburg; and the former Vaughn Elementary School, 544 Braceville-Robinson Road in Braceville Township.
Portions of these sites were sold in the auction to six bidders, whom Auctioneer Paul Basinger declined to identify until the school board passes resolutions to complete the sales Friday. There were 23 registered bidders in the auction.
The school board will realize a total of $440,500 in the sale of all properties combined, slightly higher than the figure of just over $400,000 Joseph said he had expected they would sell for. "Every piece [of land] was sold," he said.
The former high school and the two former elementary schools were sold as surplus property after the district moved into a new $28 million third- through 12th-grade building on North Leavitt Road in August.
The district continues to use Bascom Elementary School, also on North Leavitt Road, for kindergarten through second grade.
In all three cases, the sales agreements say that the board of education will retain possession of the land until the former school buildings are demolished using state funds.
Basinger will also auction the contents of all three buildings at 10 a.m. Nov. 12 at the former high school on West Market Street.