Agreement between Butler school district, city for Pullman Park moving forward
A deal to transfer management of Michelle Krill Field at Historic Pullman Park to the Butler Area School District may be coming soon.
District superintendent Brian White gave an update at a school board meeting on Monday, May 12, on a potential agreement for Pullman Park with the City of Butler.
“We have an agreement that we find acceptable between the parties. It’s just that the city has to choose when and if it’s going to happen,” White told the board.
White said he feels there is forward motion toward an agreement, but is unsure of what processes the city may need to go through before it can move forward. He said that he would present the agreement to the school board when appropriate.
The board asked what financial responsibilities would fall to the district and what would remain with the city. White said the city plans to cover immediate needs, such as the turf, but liabilities such as insurance would be shared.
Previously, Mayor Bob Dandoy said repairs could cost upward of $400,000, with about half covering the cost of the new turf.
On Tuesday, White said he had discussed the matter further with Dandoy and the city would look to review the future of Pullman Park soon. The next opportunity for city officials to discuss the park would be a forum meeting scheduled for Thursday, May 15.
As for the district’s 2025-26 budget, also approved at the Monday meeting, no money has been set aside for the park. White said he anticipates being able to operate off revenues the park generates.
White explained that if the district needs to inject money into the park, it would need to establish an enterprise fund. An enterprise fund is a separate fund under the district where revenue from the park can go and all expenses related to it can come out of.
White said he’s had loose conversations with “outside groups” to support the park and look for further investment opportunities. He also said he has “a couple ideas” for the future of concessions at the park.
White noted on Monday that the school district still technically owns the former Butler Middle School as a tax hiccup is navigated.
“It turns out that there was an assessed value to the middle school, which was quite outrageous … It’s millions of dollars,” White said.
If the sale is completed with this assessed value, new owner Sumner McDanel would be taxed on the property at the assessed value. He was the second highest bidder in a March hearing related to the property, but was awarded the sale in April at a cost of $450,000.
White explained that the district’s solicitor, alongside city and county officials, were working to fix the issue before the property’s sale is finalized. However, White clarified that the property is still sold, as the district has already signed the agreement and received the money.
The next regular school board meeting is set for 7:30 p.m. on Monday, June 9. The next community engagement session will be hosted at the Center Avenue Community School at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, May 19.
