Paul and Kadie had a special guest on Friday’s “Generation Gap” episode, to discuss happenings and circumstances surrounding Iowa Wesleyan University. Doug Moore, principal of Highland Group LLC, a Des Moines based company, has been working for the past 12 months on ensuring a smooth transition for the community of Mount Pleasant after the closure of the University. The agreement expired on May 31st, and Doug was able to provide a recap.
Moore admitted that he was expecting more issues with the properties than surfaced, one example being freezing pipes. However, he stated that the project went better than expected. The dorms were winterized and with the assistance of local contractors, many problems were avoided.
While the vast majority of buildings will be repurposed, one building that did not survive is the Old Gymnasium, and locals may have found that upsetting. According to Moore, the damage to the exterior of the property was beyond repair, and it’s fate was sealed. The pile of rubble that lays there today belongs to the demolition contractor.
Transparency has been, perhaps, the key word in the closure of the former university. With the sale of buildings happening in what seemed to be a very short period, eyebrows were raised. Doug Moore assured that the USDA received all of the proceeds from the building sales and the auction, and that they will forgive the rest of the large debt. Moore is confident that transparency was achieved, saying that in 30 years of work in liquidations, he has never seen such transparency.
He later stated that this process was no faster or slower than other liquidations. When it comes to the periphery buildings, the only bids to come were from those who purchased the buildings. Christopher Ales, along with an ownership recently purchased buildings on the east and west side of campus, and Moore believes he is an “honest and up-front guy.” He has no doubt that those properties will be repurposed into something that will benefit the community.
Whether Mount Pleasant has a university or not, Doug Moore picked up on how special this town really is, and said that he is a Mount Pleasant fan.