By Rebecca Wallis
Dundee, OR – April 27,2026
The former Dundee Elementary School property is back on the market after a previously reported sale failed to move forward, according to Newberg-Dundee Public Schools Superintendent David Parker.
In December 2025, Newsberg reported that the former school property at 140 S.W. Fifth St. in Dundee had sold for $4.25 million to Cascadia Development Partners. The article stated the Newberg-Dundee School Board voted Nov. 18 to sell the district-owned property and that the offer included a $200,000 down payment and a 12-month closing timeline.
Rumors have circulated in recent months that the sale had fallen through, but no recent public reporting had confirmed the status of the deal. Yamhill County News reached out to the listing company and Parker for comment.
Property Confirmed Back on the Market
The property is being marketed through Macadam Forbes. Yamhill County News confirmed the listing remains active in a phone conversation and through an April 24 email from Macadam Forbes Operations Coordinator Ruby Alvarez Morquecho, who provided the current listing for the former school property and identified Rhys Konrad and Kevin VandenBrink as broker contacts.
Parker confirmed April 24 that the prior transaction did not proceed.
“Following a careful review of the prior offer, and given that the buyer did not meet the required timelines for delivering earnest money, the district decided to allow the offer to lapse in accordance with the terms of the sale agreement,” Parker wrote in an email to Yamhill County News. “The Title Company has since released the transaction, and the property is once again actively listed on the market.”
Parker said three parties have expressed interest in the property, but no formal offers had been submitted as of April 24.
Sale Was Expected to Help Pay Off New School Property Loan
The status of the former Dundee Elementary property is significant because the district previously tied the sale to repayment of the loan on the new Dundee Elementary School property. The School Board had approved a refinance of the bond loan in December. As of the date of publishing, no refinance has occured
In the December Newsberg article, Parker said the district had determined selling the former building was the most practical outcome after evaluating long-term planning for the facility. The report also stated that funds from the sale would go toward paying off the loan on the new school property.
The new Dundee Elementary School, located at 800 S.E. Eighth St., was built for $28 million as part of the district’s $141 million construction bond approved by voters in November 2020. The new school was completed in August 2024.
The former school building is approximately 48,700 square feet and was built in 1953. The older gym was built in 1937. According to the Newsberg article, district officials cited aging systems, outdated design, narrow hallways and the building’s location along Highway 99W as reasons the property was not practical to remodel for current school use.
Financial Questions Come During Levy Discussion
The failed sale comes as Newberg-Dundee Public Schools is asking voters to consider a local option levy in the May 2026 election.
Yamhill County News previously reported Jan. 25 that district officials were preparing to ask voters for a new local option property tax levy to help restore instructional time and stabilize finances. That report noted the proposed levy was being discussed alongside school closures, boundary changes, grade reconfiguration and larger class sizes as possible responses to declining enrollment and financial pressure.
The January article also noted that the district already levies a permanent operating tax rate and a separate bond levy, and that any approved local option levy would be new and additive, layered on top of existing school taxes.
Yamhill County News later reported March 25 that the district’s levy communications raised questions about whether the district’s outreach remained informational or crossed into advocacy under Oregon law. That report noted the district had funded a levy website and directed the public to the site through parent emails, newsletters, school-level newsletters, official Facebook posts, a mobile pop-up on the district website and the superintendent’s official email signature block.
Those issues are separate from the Dundee property sale, but together they add context to the district’s broader financial picture. The district has asked voters to consider additional local tax funding while a property sale previously expected to help pay down debt on the new Dundee school property has not closed.
Property Remains Available
For now, the former Dundee Elementary property remains unsold.
The Newsberg December report characterized the property as having “officially” received a new owner, but the terms reported at the time showed the transaction still included a down payment requirement and a 12-month closing timeline.
The district’s April 24 statement now confirms the prior offer lapsed before closing because the buyer did not meet the required timeline for delivering earnest money.
The status of the property sale is significant because proceeds from the sale were previously expected to help pay down the loan on the new Dundee Elementary School property. With the prior offer now lapsed, the timeline for any future sale remains uncertain.
Future offers would likely require additional district review before any final sale is completed. For now, Parker said the property is actively listed again, three parties have expressed interest, and no formal offers have been submitted.
Photo Credit: Yamhill County News File
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