The old elementary school in Nucla will soon be emptied. West End Public Schools District Superintendent Clint Wytulka told the Forum that while nothing is happening with that vacant building just yet, it’s time to auction the contents inside. That includes thousands of items that were previously part of Naturita Elementary School and the old middle school and high school in Nucla.
There are file cabinets, shelves, wicker furniture, desks, tables, chairs, storage lockers and more.
Jimmy Flowers, a professional auctioneer who has done much work in the West End, has been on site and has taken at least 2,000 photos that he will be uploading over the next week. The auction is strictly online though, and Wyltulka said that’s for good reason.
It’s too problematic to have everything available at once for a live auction, and the buyer pool locally is not big enough to support it.
When Flowers puts the auction online in the next week, it will be seen nationally. Flowers said ideally some other small schools or churches who need this type of furniture and equipment will take advantage of the auction. Items will be listed into bundles — for example 10 desks grouped together and the same goes for 20 chairs — because it does’t make sense to list hundreds of the same item separately.
There will be a specific website and a QR code that people can access. All in the West End are invited to preview the items, and similar to e-Bay, they can create a watchlist.
The auction begins July 31 and will end on Aug. 7, lasting a week long.
Aug. 10 will be loading day, and many volunteers will be on site to oversee people coming with trailers to pick up the items they will have purchased.
Wytulka agreed it would be amazing if the school could make money on the auction. Still, Flowers must be paid for his work. And, Wytulka said the bigger goal is liquidating the items and emptying the old school.
With a seven-day bidding period, Wytulka and Flowers are hoping the auction items are seen. Some of the desks might be old; they agreed there are things that go back to the 1950s. Wytulka said people might have a sentimental feeling about some of the things offered. But, there are newer ones too, like flat-screen TVs with stands.
“Hopefully, we do our fiduciary duty and get this stuff sold for a reasonable amount of money and get it out of here,” Flowers said.
“We want (the items) to go to good homes and hope somebody can use them,” Wytulka added.
Wytulka said those in the West End who are interested in looking or participating should log onto the auction website as soon as it becomes available. He said people must register when they access the site.
The school superintendent said it would good for local folks to become familiar with how it works. He wants people to have plenty of time and not feel limited in their ability to navigate the technology.
There was a previous auction in December of 2023 at the old Nucla Middle School-High School. Wytulka said that was different and focused more on fixtures and attachments. He said people did show up and purchase various things, including urinals, drinking fountains and more.
The San Miguel Basin Forum will publish the auction website and QR code in print and online when those are up and running.
