The Nebo School Board promised Wednesday to restore the old Payson Middle School as a condition of its sale. Payson Mayor Russell Hillman complained that the school had been "trashed."
Payson had intended to purchase the structure, which most recently was used as Taylor Elementary School, then transfer it to Young Living Essential Oils, now headquartered in Riverton. Young Living is remodeling the old Bon Ton building in Payson as its world headquarters. The Payson school would be used as a facility to teach how to use their products.But the restoration will be according to the appraisal, and that didn't include the kitchen equipment, according to Nebo District Operations Manager Brent Hawkins. Hillman said Young Living officials were especially interested in the kitchen the way it was when they previewed the property three weeks ago.
Since then, the kitchen equipment has been removed, along with the school's sound system and ceiling fans in the library, Hillman said.
"It's been trashed. I'm not sure we're interested in the building the way it is," he said. The city had bid $290,000 for the school, which the board accepted. "Someone had a garage sale," he added. "Things were taken right off the wall."
Superintendent Denis Poulson told the Deseret News the school held a sale, and some items were transferred to other schools and others were sold to the public. The kitchen equipment was not part of the bid, he said, and was considered the property of the food service department. The equipment was taken out and put in storage, he said, except for the dishwasher, which was installed in another school.
Hawkins blamed the problem on a "miscommunication" because the district had planned to demolish the building.
Hillman said the kitchen was important to the people interested in acquiring the school. "The place is in a shambles over there," he said.