1918 Kasson Public School

In the fall of 2006 my mother called me to report the City of Kasson had voted to demolish the 1918 Kasson Public School within which I attended grade school.  I attended numerous city council meetings.  I discovered the reasons for demolishing the historic school were ill-conceived and there was no plan other than the lot to be vacant.  I offered solutions to the council.  The march toward demolition continued.  Parallel the non-profit organization Kasson Alliance for Restoration (KARE) was formed.  After the demolition bids were opened in May 2007 KARE filed a demolition injunction with the assistance from attorney Mark Anfinson.  In 2008 the city agreed to settle out of court with both sides agreeing to share the cost of a $30,000 historic structures reuse study.  However, the city was uncooperative which led to them voting to demolish a second time.  A second injunction was filed.  The city responded by offering the school to KARE for $240,000.  KARE formed the 1918 Kasson School Public School Limited Liability Limited Partnership to sell shares in the school for $500 a piece.  194 shares were sold totalling $97,000.  The remainder was donated by Jon Tollefson.  Since then three purchase agreements have been brokered with developers to reuse the school as apartments.  Various issues precluded each development plan from taking off.  As of January 2022, discussions with developers are ongoing.