No buyers yet for St. Joseph’s school in downtown Las Vegas

Interested buyers continue to float offers for downtown’s historic St. Joseph’s Catholic School, but none has yet reached its $2 million asking price.

St. Joseph’s first opened in 1948. It closed in June after officials determined its enrollment made operating it no longer viable. That generated a number of tearful remembrances from former students and parents of current students who cherished the education their children were receiving.

Located at 1300 Bridger Ave., the school sits on 2.89 acres over a city block. Ernest Freggiaro of H&L Realty says the price is comparable to at least one other recent sale, and he has been hearing from developers and those interested in reopening it as a charter school.

“We’ve had offers,” he says. “We just haven’t accepted any.” But he adds, “We’ve had offers close to the 2 (million.) We think we’re in the price range.”

Back when that area of downtown was the hub of the valley, St. Joseph’s taught children from K-8.

WANTED POSTER: Troubled casino guy Tim Poster caught a break Wednesday when the state Gaming Control Board voted unanimously to “reject” rather than “deny” after a hearing that exposed his link to a long list of controversial gambling figures and assorted wiseguy types. The difference enables him to act as a gaming consultant.

CASINO SANTAS: Talk about bringing good cheer. The employees of several of our major casino corporations continue to band together to collect and distribute thousands of toys for needy children this holiday season.

Two of several recent examples: MGM Resorts International’s employees just finished collecting a staggering 461 tons of food for Three Square Food Bank, and this week Wynn and Encore employees are presenting nearly 4,000 presents for kids at select elementary schools.

HOMELESS KIDS: The right question isn’t what to give the man who has everything. It should be, “What to give a homeless kid who has almost nothing?”

Glad you asked.

The Nevada Partnership for Homeless Youth collects gifts for its clients during the holiday season, and this year its wish list is plenty long. If you want to help, call 383-1332, drop by the William Fry Drop-In Center at 4981 Shirley St., or go to nphy.org.

DAY OF INFAMY: The National Atomic Testing Museum produces no shortage of interesting programs throughout the year, but on Saturday it will offer a public screening of the film “Pearl Harbor, One Last Goodbye” to commemorate the 72nd anniversary of the event. A meet-and-greet and lecture precede the 60-minute documentary about six Pearl Harbor survivors who returned to honor their fallen comrades. The program is free and starts at 6 p.m. Information: 794-5147.

CASINO SMOKING: As the rest of the world increases its understanding of the dangers of secondhand smoke, it’s good to see a government expressing its concern over the presence of smoke in casinos and its potential impact on patrons and employees.

Alas, it’s the government in Macau, according to its Business Daily.

ON THE BOULEVARD: The weather reports call for a heavy storm and bone-chilling low temperatures at about the same time pop princess Britney Spears arrives in Las Vegas for her “Piece of Me” show at Planet Hollywood. Coincidence? … The final cabin has been attached to the massive Las Vegas High Roller “observation wheel.” It won’t be open to the public for a while. Just the sight of the thing makes my palms sweat. … Not surprisingly, Charlie the lab upstaged owner Al Marquis during the recent Profiles of Courage fundraiser benefiting the Nevada Childhood Cancer Foundation at the Bellagio. As Charlie lacks opposable thumbs, Marquis was allowed to hold the award.

Have an item for Bard of the Boulevard? Email comments and contributions to jsmith@reviewjournal.com or call (702) 383-0295.