Bidders will have another chance to purchase the former Madison Junior High School property.
The land at 690 Ashland Road in Mansfield could be on the market by the end of this month, according to Madison Superintendent Rob Peterson.
“I suspect that the board will approve putting the property on the market,” Peterson said.
The old Madison Junior High School was demolished in 2014. That building, which served as the district’s high school starting in 1925, closed in 2013 following the construction of a new middle school. The green space has since been used for Madison’s youth soccer programs.
“There are a couple of small buildings on it,” Peterson said. “An old concession stand from the football field and an outdoor maintenance building.”
The property, which totals 12.9 acres, is technically separated into two plats of 5.9 acres and 7 acres sold as one lot.
‘We can’t give it away’
Members of the Madison Local Schools Board of Education tried to sell the land during an auction Feb. 23.
Of the 23 bidders, the highest offer was $141,900. In 2024, the property was appraised at $420,000.
In a special board meeting Feb. 24, members voted 4-1 against accepting the bid. Mary Kotterman was the lone dissenter.
“We can’t give it away,” Board President Amy Walker said. “With $141,000, you’re giving it away. We can’t give it away.”
The superintendent said state law had forced the district to offer the land through public auction.
“We held the right to turn down the highest bidder if we didn’t feel like the bid was high enough or appropriate for the property,” Peterson said. “And that’s what happened.”
‘We can get an appropriate value’
After the auction, the school board put the property’s sale on its April 22 meeting agenda.
District administrators believe the property’s value, two years after its appraisal, is still somewhere around the $400,000 mark, at least on paper.
“We know that we’re not going to sell it for that,” Peterson said. “But we feel like we can get an appropriate value out of it significantly higher than what the highest bid was at the auction.”
The superintendent said potential uses include commercial buildings, housing developments and athletic complexes.
“There’s a lot of flexibility there in how that land could be used and developed,” Peterson said.
Once school board members vote to sell the land, Peterson and Treasurer Bradd Stevens will set the price. Their initial discussions about a proposed asking price have approached $300,000.
First, though, they need to talk to their real estate agent. It could be early May before the land is available on the open market.
Potential buyers are free to contact the district at any time to learn more, or to make an offer.
Contact Zach Tuggle at 419-564-3508. Follow him on X at @zachtuggle.
This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Former Madison Junior High School property will be back on the market
Reporting by Zach Tuggle, Mansfield News Journal / Mansfield News Journal
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