Good Cheer has made an offer to buy the Masonic Temple at Bayview Corner for its new food bank.

Good Cheer has made the offer with a 90-day contingency so it can conduct a feasibility study to determine whether the building could be remodeled to serve as the food bank for South End residents.

The Masonic Temple is located on 4.2 acres off Bayview Road. Good Cheer has already acquired one acre adjacent to Bayview School for the site of its new food bank.

But Good Cheer board members said they are hopeful the Masonic Temple building will suit their purposes, rather than building a new facility.

“When the Masonic Temple site came up, it was too good not to explore,” said Maury Hood, chairman of the building committee for the Good Cheer board.

Hood said they made an offer on the site on July 4, but would not disclose how much.

“It is for more than the assessed value,” he said.

“The question is, can we use it for our purposes? It would be recycling an existing building,” Hood said.

Hood said more space would be needed for refrigerators and freezers.

The Masons decided to sell their building because it’s facing dwindling membership and loss of rent paid by the women’s Masonic organization, Eastern Star. The South Whidbey Eastern Star has joined with a group in Everett.

“Good Cheer has made an offer that is acceptable to us with the caveat of the feasibility study,” said Charrison Lochaby, president of the temple association for the Masons.

“If it fits into place, it will be a win-win situation for both Good Cheer and the Masonic Temple,” Lochaby said.

Lochaby said the Masons are exploring other locations they could use for a meeting place.

“Without the financial burden of the building, we can get on with the work of Masonry,”

he said.

Gayle Saran can be reached at 221-5300 or gsaran@southwhidbeyrecord.com.