The Swartz Creek (Michigan) school board has rejected a proposal to sell one of its elementary school for $40 million — part of a state-backed plan to build a 1,300-acre megasite near Flint.
Mlive.com reports that the school board voted to reject the offer from the Flint & Genesee Economic Alliance to buy Morrish Elementary after residents confronted officials over alleged behind-the-scenes discussions about the potential sale.
The meeting became heated when a parent produced an email allegedly showing that some board members and district administrators had met with the alliance earlier this year — a meeting never previously disclosed to the full board or public.
Before the meeting’s end, the board voted to hire an outside law firm to investigate whether proper procedures were followed during the informal talks about selling the 400-student school.
Interim Superintendent Jim Kitchen confirmed that he was invited to a meeting along with other school officials to discuss a potential new building project, during which a vendor presented information and a preliminary sketch.
The $40 million proposal from the Flint & Genesee Economic Alliance would have allowed the district to continue using Morrish Elementary for two years while building a replacement elsewhere.
The building sits within the footprint of the proposed “Advanced Manufacturing District of Genesee County,” a two-square-mile development.
Tyler Rossmaessler, executive director of the Flint & Genesee Economic Alliance, said earlier this year that although the school isn’t critical to the megasite plan, the Alliance believes the offer represents a collaborative opportunity.
School board members said the offer wasn’t enough to cover the cost of replacing the school. But several indicated they are open to negotiating a higher price.
In August, semiconductor manufacturer SanDisk withdrew from plans to build a $63 billion chip plant on the site despite Michigan offering a $6.24 billion incentive package.
Despite the setback, the Flint & Genesee Economic Alliance and state officials continue acquiring land for the 1,300-acre site.
For now, Morrish Elementary remains open, serving more than 400 of the district’s 3,500 students. But the debate over whether the school should be sold — and how openly those talks are conducted — has left the community divided.
