For Immediate Release: Tuesday, November 30, 2010
ROCKVILLE, Md., November 30, 2010—The Montgomery County Council today voted 8-1 to approve the sale of the former Peary High School property in Aspen Hill to the Berman Hebrew Academy. The property was leased the property since 1996.
Councilmembers Roger Berliner, Marc Elrich, Valerie Ervin, Nancy Floreen, Mike Knapp, George Leventhal, Nancy Navarro and Duchy Trachtenberg approved the sale, which was recently proposed by County Executive Isiah Leggett. Councilmember Phil Andrews voted against the resolution.
Peary was closed in 1984 due to declining enrollment. The facility deteriorated while vacant, but in 1996, then County Executive Douglas Duncan negotiated a lease agreement with the Berman Academy. The agreement included an option for the school to purchase the property. The proposed sale terms include a provision that would allow the County to repurchase the school if it is needed for public school use. More than 500 people attended a public hearing on the issue on Nov. 23.
The Berman Academy has estimated that it has spent more than $9 million to refurbish the property that is surrounded by a residential neighborhood. Enrollment at the Academy is estimated at 700 students.
The purchase price, which ratified the terms of the 1996 lease, was set at $1,914,860. A potential repurchase price is tied to the price paid plus the lesser of the fair market value of improvements made by the tenant or the depreciated actual costs of improvements. The Academy’s use of the site is limited to school uses and the public will continue to have use of the fields, gymnasium and auditorium during non-school use times. The County may reclaim the school for public school use through a legal condemnation proceeding at the repurchase price plus relocation costs. Through this proceeding, the County could retake possession of the property five years after the condemnation action is final and non-appealable.
The County Planning Board recommended approval of the sale on Nov. 18. At the Nov. 23 public hearing, a substantial majority of the approximately three dozen speakers supported the sale. The Aspen Hill Civic Association was among those supporting approval of the sale. The County’s Board of Education, County Council of Parent-Teacher Associations, and the Montgomery Civic Association were among those that opposed the sale.
The sale is still subject to the approval of the Board of Public Works.
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