By Kristin Rover
Sun staff

Milford Exempted Village School District is donating land to Miami Township for use as a park or green space.

“They’re donating the old Seipelt Elementary,” Miami Township Trustee Mary Makley Wolff said. “We’ve taken on the nine acres, what we’ll do with it we’re not really sure.”

Superintendent Dr. Robert Farrell said the district is receiving funds from the state to build a new school. He said they studied whether or not to build the new school on the existing property, but decided not to.

“That lot was challenging,” Farrell said. “And it wasn’t that big.”

Farrell said the district tried to auction off the property in April of 2014, but had no bidders.

Miami Township was interested in the land for recreational purposes, Farrell said.

He said tearing down the existing building was included in the construction plans for a new school.

“We are donating it to them with that in the deed,” Farrell said.

The land donation is a unique opportunity for the township, Wolff said.

“Once it is razed I think we’ll try to decide what ultimately will happen,” Wolff said. “We want some citizen input.”

Wolff said they have talked about possibly using the land for community gardens. She said they may also keep the land for green space.

The township does not currently have the funds to make the land a park, but will be able to maintain the land, Wolff said.