CLEARFIELD – On Monday night, the Clearfield school board approved a lease agreement with New Story for the use of the former Centre Elementary School.
The former elementary school building is approximately 21,793 square feet and is located at 2075 Highview Rd., Clearfield. The lease agreement will go into effect Sept. 1.
The lease is for $280,000 annually. New Story will be responsible for building improvements in order for it to relocate there and for children to move in, according to Superintendent Terry Struble.
Once New Story is up and running, the district will issue them a credit. New Story estimates it will make $250,000 to $300,000 in building improvements, said Struble.
Although the first year will be a bit of a “wash,” Struble said the district will see a return of $280,000 annually after that. He noted the district plans to use parts of the building for storage.
The district will maintain responsibility for utilities, such as electric, water, sewage and oil. New Story, however, will be responsible for custodial and maintenance, such as lawn care and snow removal, according to Struble.
New Story must give the district a six-month notice if it ever plans to discontinue its use of the former school building, he said. He pointed out it was a great benefit to the district’s students, which will no longer need to “go over the mountain” for New Story programs.