Kelseyville Unified School Board to consider donating Kelsey School Schoolhouse
- Elizabeth Larson
- Posted On
KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – The Kelseyville Unified School District Board of Trustees is planning a discussion on what to do with the historic Kelsey Creek Schoolhouse.
The board will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 16, at the Kelseyville Unified District Office, 4410 Konocti Road.
The Kelsey Creek Schoolhouse – also called the Hells Bend Schoolhouse – was built in 1871. It originally sat in another location, and was moved to its current home, in the 3500 block of Finley Road East, in 1882.
On Tuesday the board will consider declaring that the property is of insufficient value to defray the cost of arranging a sale and authorizing its donation to “any organization classified as a CA nonprofit benefit corporation or which has received federal tax exemption under Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3), is a charitable organization and the process of which application may be made.”
Liability appears to be a key driver in the new consideration of what to do with the building.
A four-page document included in the board’s agenda packet reported on a February hazard assessment of the building directed by the district by Keenan Associates.
“The purpose of the visit was to visually inspect the building and surrounding area to identify conditions that increase the possibility of losses,” Frank Cardoza, a senior loss control consultant, wrote in the report.
“Due to the age of the building and in an abundance of caution, invasive inspection methods may have released lead, asbestos, and/or other potentially harmful substances and were not conducted. Potential air quality issues that may be present due to moisture/water intrusion were not sampled,” Cardoza reported.
In August 2017, the board had held a discussion about giving the building to the Lake County Historical Society, which proposed to move it to the Ely Stage Stop some distance away. At the time, the board decided not to move forward.
The board agenda packet did not indicate if that organization or others have recently come forward to express interest in making a bid for the historic building.
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