With a petition signed by some 2,100 Princeton voters, citizens who want to turn the oldest part of the Valley Road School building into a non-profit community center appeared before Princeton Council Tuesday night to request that a referendum be put on the ballot in the November election.

But the town’s attorney told the Valley Road Adaptive Reuse Committee (VRS-ARC) and The Valley Road School Community Center Inc. that since the building is owned by the Princeton Public Schools, the municipality does not have jurisdiction over the property, and therefore does not have the authority to place a question on the ballot asking voters whether they support the idea of a community center.

“The initial problem we have is that this government does not own the Valley Road School building,” said lawyer Ed Schmierer. “The old 1924 deed conveyed it to the inhabitants of Princeton. It was amicably resolved 10 years ago when the deed was given to the School Board.”

There may be discussions by the governing body and the Board, he continued. “But there is no closure on any of these discussions. This is the legal hurdle that has been here from the very beginning. It’s still up in the air.”

The groups are proposing leasing the now-vacant section of the building at 369 Witherspoon Street for $1 a year over a period of 100 years. Two black box theaters, a cafe, and a box office are part of the plan, which was presented with renderings by architect Joshua Zinder. Non-profits would be able to use the spaces, and interest has already been expressed by McCarter Theatre, the after-school program Princeton School Plus, and Bryn Mawr Wellesley Books, said Kip Cherry in her remarks to the Council.

Ms. Cherry said that a preliminary cost estimate for the renovation and adaptive reuse is a total of $3.9 million, compared to the $10.8 million estimated by Princeton schools officials. The money would be raised from private donors, Ms. Cherry added.

Jim Firestone, also in favor of the proposal, said, “I think there is a misunderstanding. The Board says their estimate is $10.8 million, to renovate the building to prime space. But it doesn’t have to be [prime space].” Renovating for use as a school does require prime space, he said, while for the purposes of a community center, a different, less costly standard would apply.

Resident Dick Woodbridge, the first of the supporters to speak, asked Council to negotiate with the school district. Resident Claire Jacobus said each of the organizations that would use the proposed community center have their own boards, and know how to raise money. “Pretty soon you would have an army at the school. A lot of people are willing to give money for a community center that would be in the middle of town …. Please think hard and use your influence with the Board. Don’t let this building rot or be demolished. It would be a scar on this community far bigger than a pile of rubble on Witherspoon Street.”

Tim Quinn, president of the Board, stressed that finding a use for the portion of the building at 369 Witherspoon Street is a high priority and that the Board has not abandoned the property. “Specifically, the Board seeks a solution that will not put it in the legal or practical position of acting as landlord, but does allow it to retain a legal interest in the land should its facilities’ needs change at some point in the future — some point far sooner than 100 years,” he said.

The solution should also have no or minimal financial impact on the Board, should serve the best interests of the school district and the community and be “demonstrably viable from architectural, engineering, legal, logistical, and most importantly, funding perspectives,” he added. The Board rejected the community center proposal in March because the group had not raised funds for the project. “Given the total absence of any evidence of the group’s ability to fund its proposal, the Board arguably would have been in breach of its fiduciary responsibility to this community had it given the property to VRS-ARC on the terms proposed,” he said.

The municipality has been considering other uses for the property. The Council formed a task force early this year to explore the idea of using some of the land the building now occupies to expand the firehouse that sits next door. The town’s three volunteer fire companies merged into the firehouse’s main location after consolidation, and space is tight.

Council did not act on the issue at the meeting, but said they would like to be able to have a plan in place to present to the Board this fall.