By Kathryn Reed

A group out of the Bay Area has offered to buy the former Kingsbury Middle School site for above what it was listed for.

The Douglas County School District board this week accepted the offer of $3.75 million by Palo Alto-based Pioneer Mountain. The 22-plus-acre site in Stateline had been listed for $3.4 million.

“We do not and have not made any absolute concrete decisions on the property. Nothing is solidified. They have a lot of ideas,” Katie Foster, the real estate agent representing the buyer, told Lake Tahoe News. “I can guarantee it won’t be a housing development or hotel. It will be used for the community of Douglas County and Lake Tahoe.”

A representative at the Jan. 9 meeting told the school board the plan is to make it a youth Christian facility.

Escrow opened Jan. 11. A $50,000 deposit has been made. The buyer has a 75-day due diligence period. This means the deal could close this spring.

This Bay Area company has expressed interest in the school site at other times, but this is the first time a formal bid has been made.

Zoning and other regulatory issues involving Douglas County and Tahoe Regional Planning Agency will have to be addressed by the buyer.

DCSD has been saddled with the basic upkeep and utilities of KMS since it closed after the 2007-08 school year because of declining enrollment.

The district thought it had a buyer a year ago. That deal fell through when the person could not come up with the money. His proposal to build affordable housing was met with opposition from those who live down the street in Lake Village.