Corsicana —
Navarro College District President Dr. Richard Sanchez said Thursday the college is talking with the Magnablend company in Waxahachie about acquiring land adjacent to the college’s Waxahachie campus.
The property, along Highway 287 and John Arden Drive, was the site of a massive fire in October 2011. As cleanup of the site continues, the company has since relocated to property that was to have been the home of the Superconducting Super Collider nearby.
Sanchez told college trustees that he and Dr. Kenneth Martin had met with Scott Pendrey, Magnablend’s C.E.O., talking with Pendrey about the impact the fire had on the college — an enrollment drop of about 230 students — and how the college could benefit from the land once abatement procedures were completed, which Sanchez said should be by May.
“They want to keep it for now because they feel they may need the spur,” Sanchez said. “It could be they may only need a few acres and they’ll have the remainder of the 12 acres available.”
Sanchez said he told Magnablend the college “had to have that property,” and Pendrey gave “a very neutral but positive response” when asked if Magnablend would consider “gifting” the property to the college, or a portion of it.
Sanchez said Pendrey told him the college would be considered first when they decided to part with the land.
“If it is not gifted, I believe we would pay a small, reasonable amount for that property,” Sanchez said.
A spokesman in Pendrey’s office would only confirm Friday that there had been “some discussions” with the college but provided no details or timetable.
Sanchez said the college’s Waxahachie campus is “land locked” and would use the additional property to “spread out more” and for parking purposes.
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Bob Belcher may be reached by email at belcher@corsicanadailysun.com. Want to “Soundoff” on this story? Email: soundoff@corsicanadailysun.com
NAVARRO COLLEGE MEETING BRIEFS
By Bob Belcher/Daily Sun Staff Writer
Consent Agenda approved
Minutes of meetings held on Jan. 19, Jan. 20, Feb. 6 and Feb. 7 were approved by trustees, along with an addition to the Faculty Hearing section of the Navarro College Administrative Policies and Procedures Manual.
Financial statement approved
Trustees approved the January 2012 financial statement, and the latest look at the college’s budget, now at just over $114 million for FY 2011-2012. Trustees also heard an update on the Navarro College Employees Retirement Plan and its performance and participation.
District lines approved
After a question about a county precinct map used to approve new district lines for the college district, a new map was approved by trustees Thursday. None of the existing single-district members were affected by the new map.
Update on College Crime Statistic
Kraig Watkins, Navarro College Department of Public Safety chief of police, presented the annual racial profiling report for trustees to review, along with policies and procedures outlining officer performance and conduct.
Housing update
Charles Betts, director of Residence Life, updated trustees on personnel and activities in the housing department on the Corsicana campus, currently serving 855 student residents. Construction on a new residence hall set to start in March will increase capacity to about 905 students in Fall 2012, Betts said.
President’s Report presented
Dr. Richard Sanchez, college district president, said the college is anticipating up to $152,000 in tax abatement funds from Home Depot distribution center, and $19,000 from Lance Foods; he also reported 29 students were dropped from enrollment after failing to receive bacterial meningitis inoculations as required by state law; enrollment numbers for Spring 2012 are down by about 1 percent, with contact hours down about 3.3 percent for the semester, both figures besting state averages.
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