KEEGO HARBOR, Mich. – Parents and other community members in Keego Harbor express concern over an elementary school possibly closing even after voting for a bond three years ago to allocate money toward the school.
Voters said that before voting “yes,” they were assured that Roosevelt Elementary School -- part of the West Bloomfield School District -- would not close down.
There previously was talk about closing the school. However, a bond was passed in 2017 with money aimed for renovations.
A week ago, parents, staff and voters learned that West Bloomfield School District was consolidating from five elementary schools to four schools, with Roosevelt potentially being the one to close.
“It’s a 100-year-old school. It’s iconic,” said said David Emerling, whose children went to Roosevelt. “It’s absolutely a lie because they told us this would not close.”
During an informal online meeting Thursday, school officials explained the money allocated for the school is virtually untouched.
When asked at the meeting about not yet spending the money, Shannon Bingham, who is the West Bloomfield school district demographics consultant, said “I don’t know the exact particulars of that. It would be my assumption that we would like to wait until we’re sure we’re going to continue forward with Roosevelt indefinitely before we spend the significant amount of money on it.”
Many parents, like Kevin and Kristen Douglas, felt their questions were not addressed.
“They’re thinking forward that they had always planned to close Roosevelt. And so, they lied to the constituents,” said Kirsten Douglas.
Watch the full report in the video above.
More: Oakland County news