Rowan County commissioners no longer have a buyer for the decades-old building at 1236 W. Innes St.

Commissioners met for about 30 minutes in closed session during Monday’s regularly scheduled meeting to consider terminating a $300,000 offer from Salisbury-based Faith Assembly International Church. The group first made its offer for the West Innes building in September. After going through an upset bid process, commissioners didn’t receive any other offers and accepted the church’s proposal.

When commissioners exited Monday’s closed session, County Attorney Jay Dees confirmed the offer had fallen through and never closed. Dees said he would work to begin drafting paperwork to finalize the deal’s cancelation.

Dees said county staff proceeded with the deal until closing. Final paperwork was signed, but Faith Assembly International Church never provided the county with the required money for the purchase. The church gave county government an initial amount of several thousand dollars as a deposit for the sale, which Dees said the county could legally keep as part of the cancelled deal.

When contacted in September about the sale, Jacob Doe, pastor of Faith Assembly International Church, said his congregation was outgrowing its current facility on East Horah Street. The West Innes building was a solution to the church’s growing space needs. Doe couldn’t be reached Monday evening to comment on the failed deal.

Rowan County’s failed sale means its building on West Innes is once again on the market, as it has been for years.

After a lenghty period of trying to sell the building by itself, Rowan County in April hired Rockwell-based R. Giles Moss Auction and Real Estate to sell county property. The West Innes building was one of two former Social Services buildings that had sat vacant. While the Social Services building on West Innes dates back decades and consists of multiple segments built in different years, one on Mahaley Avenue is in significantly better shape and was once a potential location for Rowan County’s Board of Elections.

One portion of the West Innes building opened in the 1960s. Another opened in 1952. When commissioners finalized the purchase deal late last year, Commissioner Craig Pierce commented on the strange layout of the structure. Pierce said a church may be the only appropriate use for the building.

The failed sale may now reignite a conversation about what commissioners should do with the property — tear it down and sell it or continue marketing the building as is. Once, commissioners and school board members debated whether it could become a school board central office.

When commissioners finalized the purchase offer in November, Chairman Greg Edds contemplated whether the cost of demolition would make it nearly impossible for the county to see a profit by selling the property. However, the county only received one offer for the building from the church.

Tax records value the building at $1.2 million.

Contact reporter Josh Bergeron at 704-797-4246.