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Turner board votes to proceed with negotiations to buy land

BELOIT TOWNSHIP — The Turner School Board on Monday voted to proceed with negotiations to buy 40 acres a quarter mile north of the middle/high school for possible future construction.

The purchase could be approved April 1 in the second of two referendum questions facing district voters. The question asks for $2.5 million for stadium renovations and land acquisition.

The district had budgeted $800,000 to buy land while it considered buying 60 acres, District Administrator Dennis McCarthy said.

Now that the district is considering a parcel so close, it will not have to build duplicate athletic facilities, making 40 acres sufficient, he said.

He expects the district to spend less than $800,000.

McCarthy would not share details of the district’s offer, because negotiations are ongoing.

The property is behind the current middle/high school and is north of the new Blackhawk Run subdivision.

Voters’ decision on the land will set the stage for a planned future referendum to address the district’s space needs. The district is forming an ad hoc citizen committee to look at the needs.

Solutions could include building a new high school or expanding the current school.

As part of the expansion process, administration had been considering closing Townview Elementary, 2442 W. Beloit Newark Road. McCarthy said that is no longer considered a viable option.