R2023-02 Resolution Authorizing Intergovernmental Agreement between the City of Decatur and Decatur Public School District #61 regarding 1140 West Sunset Avenue

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January 12, 2023 TO: Mayor Julie Moore Wolfe & Decatur City Council Members FROM: Scot Wrighton, City Manager RE: Derelict Woodrow Wilson School Building After many months of negotiations, the city and Decatur Public Schools reached agreement last month on an Intergovernmental Agreement(IGA)governing how the two local governments will work together to demolish and clear the derelict Woodrow Wilson school site. The DPS-61 School Board approved the attached IGA on December 27, 2022. The agreement provides that the city will retain ownership of the building while it demolishes the school structure and clears the site. After the site is cleared,the school district agrees to pay the city one-half of the legal and demolition costs as payment for acquiring the cleared site. The city will then convey the entire site to DPS-61. After transfer,the school district will be responsible for all further maintenance and upkeep of the property. The IGA contains no stipulations restricting future use of the property (although the school district is constrained by the city's zoning code). Besides being an example of successful intergovernmental cooperation,this IGA is mutually beneficial to the city and the school district.The removal of the Woodrow Wilson School provides a much needed "shot-in-the-arm"for neighborhood revitalization and raising the values of nearby properties (a city goal), and it provides a potential site for a future school district facility. Funds to demolish the building and clear the site will come from budgeted demolition line items. If more funds are needed for demolition,the City Council has established a special projects reserve for initiatives just like this one; meaning that this expenditure will not suppress the increased rate of demolitions the city expects to realize in 2023.