The Wichita Falls ISD School Board on Tuesday voted to sell the former Kirby Middle School property to the Wichita Falls Chamber of Commerce for $1.225 million.
Bethann Oswald of Bishop Realtor Group, who represented the buyer, said the chamber intends to transfer the property to the city of Wichita Falls, which would use it for a police station.
She said chamber CEO Ron Kitchens toured the property on Loop 11 with city officials before making the bid, which was for the asking price.
She said the chamber asked for a 90-day feasibility period before closing the deal.
City spokesperson Chris Horgen had said earlier the city would only commit to a 60-90 due diligence period, and any purchase would have to be approved by the City Council at a later date.
“If all goes smoothly and well, should close before the end of the year,” Oswald told School Board members.
The trustees also voted to sell the former Lamar Elementary School property on Lucas Street to Overland Land Group for $400,000.
The company wants to wait about a year to close on the property to obtain a grant, Oswald said.
The school closed at the end of the 2023 school year.
The board rejected a bid for the former Sam Houston Elementary School, a 112-year-old campus on Grant Street, because they considered a $150,000 bid too low. The school had closed in 2014.
Oswald said the board might consider demolishing the structure to attract a better bid in the future.
Members voted to sell two vacant lots owned by the district.
The Kirby property includes more than 120,000 square feet of building space spread over 17 acres, according to the listing.
Kirby closed in May 2024, and the middle school function was moved into what is now Hirschi Middle School on Maurine Street. Hirschi was decommissioned as a high school when the two new high schools opened for the 2024-2025 school year.
This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: WFISD votes to sell school to Chamber of Commerce, it might become a police station
Reporting by Lynn Walker, Wichita Falls Times Record News / Wichita Falls Times Record News
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