Report: Ball State Buying Nearby Middle School
Ball State University has signed an agreement to acquire Northside Middle School from Muncie Community Schools. Indiana Public Radio reports the university is expected to pay $1.27 million for the facility that is located just north of the main campus. Muncie Community Schools will be permitted to lease to property back from Ball State for one dollar a year over five years.
IPR reports Ball State will pay MCS $60,000 a year for maintenance costs while it’s being leased. Previous district plans call for consolidating buildings to help deal with budget shortfalls. The MCS board has also approved a proposal that involves constructing a new middle school on the property of the former Storer Elementary, which has been closed.
Ball State is working toward acquiring land adjacent to its campus, IPR reports, including a former elementary school-turned-administration building near Northside Middle School.
Northside was built in 1970 as a high school. It converted to a middle school in 1988, serving as one of two middle schools in the financially-struggling district.