I made a huge mistake with this recent post on the possible sale of the Central High School property. The Trib’s Education reporter Jana Hollingsworth called me up today to tell me that I’d mentioned a sales price in this post on the subject. I was shocked to hear that I’d done this. Jana was shocked to hear me explain that doing this was “inadvertent.” Bone headed would have been a more accurate description.
If the deal falls through you can blame Lincolndemocrat. That’s me, if you were wondering whether I was being evasive.
By this time a thousand readers will have read the price I mentioned so pulling it would be too little, too late. If the deal is scotched I presume I’ll take all the blame as well I should. I promised the School Board that I would not mention the details of the offers and counter offers after our closed meeting to discuss the possible transaction. I badly failed at that promise and am mortified.
I’m flattered that Jana thinks that everything I saw on the blog is strategic. Its sometimes just my fast fingers. I offered a lame excuse that is only an excuse. I said I was impressed with how much Jana had reported after the closed meeting based on District spokesmen passing on details to her. I noted that the potential buyer (which I did keep under wraps) was still unnamed but I concluded wrongly that a sales price had been mentioned. Jana was about to file a data request as it is her contention that the price should be made public. I don’t think I agree with Jana at this stage of the negotiations just shy of signatures.
I would not confirm any sales price to Jana as if that was going to make a difference. Trust me, my listing any price whether right or wrong was definitely inadvertent. At the moment Art Johnston’s future and the sanity of the next eleven months is of far greater concern to me. I would do nothing to intentionally to put myself in a defensive crouch and hand Art’s detractors the higher moral ground. That’s especially true considering that nothing about the possible sale of Central, mitigates the terrible awfulness of the Mary Rice report.
