BENNINGTON, Vt. (AP) — The Southwestern Vermont Medical Center is offering to buy much of the property of the bankrupt Southern Vermont College in Benington for $3.2 million.
The hospital wants to keep 371-acre campus locally owned, with a goal of making the athletic fields and its hiking trails accessible for the community.
“The leadership of the health system, through the direction of its board of directors, is committed to developing a long-range plan to maximize the use of this valuable community asset, as well as how the property could enhance community and health-related services for the Southern Vermont region,” officials said in a new release.
Bankruptcy Trustee Raymond Obuchowski said he expected to file a motion with the bankruptcy judge to accept the college’s officer, but other potential buyers have until Dec. 7 to make “higher or better” offers.
Obuchowski told the Bennington Banner the proposed sale involves the main campus, but not the former Bennington Center for the Arts and theater off West Road or the Gate House building on Monument Avenue, both of which were donated to the college prior to its closure in May 2019.
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