A former east-side elementary school turned church has been sold to a nonprofit organization for $2.25 million, Polk County real estate transactions show.

Hope Ministries, the group that bought the former Douglas Elementary School at 3800 E. Douglas Ave. in Des Moines, plans to open a homeless shelter for women and children at the site.

The Des Moines City Council in May approved a request to change the property’s zoning to allow the shelter. Area residents had raised concerns that a shelter would cause property values to decrease, cause overcrowding in nearby schools and spark an increase in crime.

Hope Ministries operates three centers that provide meals and shelter for Des Moines’ homeless population. It also operates thrift stores and provides free, long-term recovery programs that address the causes of homelessness, chronic poverty, addictions and other issues.

The 5.6-acre property, which includes a playground, had been listed for sale on LoopNet for $2.6 million.

Hope Ministries’ rezoning request was first discussed by the city’s Plan and Zoning Commission in January.

The property was valued at $901,000 in 2019, Polk County Assessor’s Office online records show. The property, however, is tax-exempt.

The original school structure was built in 1908, county records show. At least three additions have been added over the years. The structure is about 43,300 square feet. Douglas Elementary School was open about nine decades. In 2001, the school merged with McKee Elementary and a new elementary – Brubaker Elementary School – opened at 2900 E. 42nd St. For three years beginning in 2003, students whose schools were being updated were bused to the former Douglas Elementary, according to school officials.

The structure was sold in 2010 to Eastwood Church of the Open Bible for $100,000. Eastwood transferred the property in August 2011 to Experience Church of the Open Bible, according to Polk County real estate records.

In other transactions:

ARG PSDEMIA001 LLC, based in Rhode Island, paid Wells Plasma LLC $3.2 million for property at 1223 Sixth Ave. in Des Moines, real estate transaction records show. The property, which had been owned by a Louisiana-based investment group, includes an 11,667-square-foot medical office building that was constructed in 1992. The building has housed a blood plasma center. In 2019, the property was valued at $1.4 million, records show. The transaction was recorded on May 27.

Bondurant Lots II LLC of Urbandale paid the Ethel C. Sankey Trust $1.6 million for 11 acres of farm ground located west of Northeast 72nd Street in Bondurant, records show. The ground was valued at $14,100 in 2019. The transaction was recorded on May 26.

GVN Holdings Ltd. of Clive paid Solid Ground-Meadowlark LLC $1.5 million for 13 townhouses located in a development at 301 S.E. 11th St. in Grimes, records show. The two-story structures were built in 2006 and are valued at around $114,500 each. The transaction was completed on May 26.