By KEVIN HOWELL

Correspondent

NORTH LIMA — The South Range school board sold the stadium behind the former high school in North Lima.

The board sold the Memorial Field property of 7.779 acres to Charles J. Boris for $150,000. The property includes everything inside the fence, the former weight training building and some parking outside the fence, as well as the access from Nila Drive.

The board approved the sale by a 3-2 vote, with Taylor Christian and Terri Lally voting no.

A Boris family representative told the board last week the family wants to keep the property as a sports facility for the community. She said it will not be reserved for one specific sport or one specific school. She also acknowledged there is not much parking on the property and said the family will work with the church that owns the parking lot to secure use for events.

The Beaver Township administration also attempted to purchase the property, but provided a lower offer than the Boris family.

Trustee Erik Tabor said the township had wanted to use the property for new administrative offices and green space incorporating Memorial Park, which sits behind the stadium, and expressed disappointment the board chose to sell the property to someone else.

There was also concern there is no access to the property off South Avenue and that Nila Drive is not an adequate size to handle traffic to the stadium.

The school board had previously attempted to sell the property through a sealed bid auction, but rejected the only bid it received of $71,800. The board then hired Kutlick Realty LLC to sell the property through private sale at an asking price of $300,000 for a 6 percent commission.

The board hired the broker at the end of September in 2018 to sell the property within 12 months, with a 90-day grace period after the agreement ended.

The field has not been used competitively since the 2016 football season, and the weight room is no longer used by the wrestling team. The Little Raiders organization used the field in 2018.

The complex is no longer needed after the upgrades at the Rominger Sports Complex at the K-12 campus.

Kevin Howell is a reporter at the Salem News.