BUTLER TWP — There is new interest in the closed Broad Street Elementary School after the city council rejected a conditional use request from the previous buyer, the Arc of Butler County.

During the school board meeting Monday night, three individuals approached the board to express interest in the newly available building. The Rev. Terry Devlin of Saxonburg, Cindy Parker and former councilman Cheri Readie are members of a faith-based group, the Walk In Faith Outreach Ministry, hoping to bring a community youth center to the former school.

“We’re looking to expand. We don’t have a space or a facility of our own,” Devlin said. “We’re here to ask if we would be able to have an opportunity to make an offer.”

Board President Nina Teff said that since the Arc of Butler County pulled its sales agreement, there is no reason the group cannot make an offer on the property.

The center would provide resources for marginalized children to help them grow and develop, Readie said. This could include tutoring services or free music lessons, she said.

The project would bring together multiple organizations and churches to provide resources and programming for the center, “creating all these relationships in the heart of Butler,” according to Readie.

Readie also said the center would be interested in keeping and possibly expanding the existing playground, something the community in the Broad Street area has highlighted as a priority.

Previously, the Arc had a sales agreement with the board that needed to be approved as a conditional use for the zoning by City Council. The council voted against the conditional use 2-3 during the Nov. 15 meeting.

Mayor Tom Donaldson has said that the decision to sell to a nonprofit, which does not pay taxes, is “irresponsible” and “absurd.”

Donaldson said 40 percent of the city’s property is tax-exempt, causing financial stress.

However, as a community center, the space also would be considered a nonprofit, which caused some concern for the school board members.

Board member Suzie Bradrick said: “This is another nonprofit offer and our mayor is not keen on that. Are you going to run into the same problem (as the Arc)?”

Neil Convery and David Korn, also board members, expressed similar concerns.

Readie said there should not be any issue since the project should not need special permission from city council. She said the community center would be considered an already-permitted use, not needing a conditional use vote.

Parker said that since the community center would include educational services, it should be allowed under the current zoning, R-3.

No official offer has been made and the amount of any of possible offer was not disclosed.

During the board meeting, Bradrick also made a motion to issue a Request for Proposals to market the school with a real estate agent. The motion was approved by a vote of 5-4.

Bradrick, Convery and board members Jennifer Cummings, Leland Clark and John Conrad voted in favor of releasing a new request for proposals. Teff, Korn and board members Bill Halle and Al Vavro voted against the motion.

Convery and Halle were concerned with issuing a second RFP when the board previously issued one, receiving only one response: from former board member Jim Keffalas.

While solicitor Tom King said that is not illegal, Bradrick and Cummings want to be able to choose from a larger pool of candidates.