9/8/13 - The Pinckney Community School District is in talks with the village government about the fate of the area commonly known as Veterans' Park in the downtown area. The park was part of Village Elementary before that facility was sold to the Village of Pinckney several years ago. The building now serves as the village's new library, but the school district retained ownership of the park itself. The district is currently in charge of maintaining the park, including mowing the grass, mulching the playground, and paying the liability insurance. The district has been working with the Village of Pinckney to see if it would be possible to transfer those responsibilities. The district offered to lease the park free-of-charge, allowing the village to take control of the property and assume responsibility for its maintenance, but the village council decided against that. It has suggested buying the property outright for $1, but the school district is hesitant to give away a resource when it is currently running a deficit budget. Superintendent Rick Todd says district officials are now looking into selling the property for development, although this is expected to be difficult because a subterranean pipe running diagonally through the parcel limits the structures that can be built there. The district would also be interested in selling the parcel to the library as a way to expand its public accessibility and services. (TD)
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