March 20, 2023
Dear District 204 Community Members,
As communicated to our community on March 10, 2023 the Board of Education is no longer soliciting or considering bids at the minimum price and under the previous approved terms and conditions established on December 19, 2022, nor are we evaluating bids at any price point or under different terms and conditions. At this time, we would like to recap and share additional information related to the exploration of the potential sale of the Lyons Township High School District 204-owned Willow Springs property.
At an open meeting on December 22, 2022, the Board approved, in accordance with Section 5-22 of the Illinois School Code (105 ILCS 5/5-22), a sealed bid sale process and terms and conditions of sale, which included a minimum sales price of $55 million. The Board then published notice of the sealed bid sale three consecutive weeks in a paper of general circulation and held a bid opening on January 11, 2023. At the bid opening, the District received two bids: Bridge Industrial offered $55 million and a second company, Prologis, offered $46.5 million. Neither bidder conformed with the approved terms and conditions and at the January 23, 2023 board meeting, the Board rejected both bids in open session. Post this rejection and under section 5-22 of the School Code, since no bidder was selected, the Board remained free to negotiate a new deal with any buyer, provided that any future bids offered met or exceeded the original minimum approved price of $55 million.
On February 17, 2023, the Board received a new Letter of Interest from Prologis, Inc. This new offer for $60.5 million exceeded the minimum price and therefore allowed the District through its legal counsel to open dialogue with Prologis, Inc. to learn more about the offer. Ultimately, the terms and conditions presented by ProLogis were not consistent with those of the Board. As a result, there was no further dialogue. To view the letter of intent submitted by ProLogis, Inc. please click here.
The Board remains committed to leveraging the District-owned Willow Springs property as an important asset toward achieving Goal 5 in our Strategic Plan. As stated above, the Board of Education is no longer seeking or considering bids at the minimum price and under the previous terms and conditions approved last December. Should the Board of Education decide to pursue the sale of the Willow Springs property in the future, the Board will need to publicly approve new terms and conditions, set a new minimum price, and conduct a sealed bid process. Any and all actions taken will comply with Section 5-22 of the Illinois School Code.
Lyons Township High School District 204 Board of Education
