Old school property sold

Bridgeport School District officials are itching to sell the old Bridgeport High School property.

A special meeting took place at the new Bridgeport High School cafetorium in an effort to auction off the site.

"It's not advantageous," Superintendent Ted Downing said.

Downing said he's been trying to sell the 2-acre piece of property on and off since 2007.

No one bid, and they tore the school down.

It was only recently that Downing was thrown a curve ball.

"The school had been on site for 150 years, and we didn't own the property," Downing said.

The district didn't have a deed to the site. Instead, school officials learned it still belonged to the village.

Downing said the property was traded in an agreement between the district and Bridgeport to settle the matter, but there was another twist waiting in the wings.

"Ohio law requires you the first time you try and sell property that you have to auction it," Downing said.

School officials held a special meeting to auction the property off, with the minimum bid at $65,000.

Not to mention, the property is an expensive upkeep for the district, an overall estimated 3,000 to 4,000 dollars is shelled out yearly for that very purpose.

"All we're doing is, we keep spending money on a piece of property that we really need to get rid of," Downing said.

He said there's a chance several houses could be built at this site, something he said he’d like to see.

"It'll be nice to just go ahead and get rid of that, and then we can move forward with taking that money and reinvesting the permanent improvement down here," Downing said.

The property was sold to a couple, who wish to remain anonymous, for $73,500. 

Downing told NEWS9 they have no current plans for the property.

He said the closing deal is expected to happen in the near future.