Olympia School District headquarters makes slow progress to move

When the Olympia School District opted to purchase the Daily Olympian building three years ago for $4.8 million dollars for its new district headquarters – it had hoped to be in the building before now.

After three feasibility studies and continue negotiations with the owners the McClatchy Company, the district is making some progress.  This week it went out for bids to  reconfigure the 50,000 square feet in the building.   Total amount of money available is  $2 million dollars.

School officials point out that the HVAC and fire suppression systems have to be replaced and there is some concern about pollution under the parking lot.

There is also a clause in the agreement that allows the newspaper to rent back space for one year after the purchase is finalized.

Those in the know say the paper is looking at leasing space in downtown Olympia when the time comes for it to move.   Any space must fit the needs of a newspaper and have a conference room so the paper can continue its weekly meetings with community leaders.