This just shows the a$$ backwardness and incompetence of the Board and admin. In Skokie it started in 2016 with a comprehensive look at their facilities (admittedly it is less complex since they only have 3 schools, I think). They prioritized refurbs on a couple and then did the rebuild. They worked through all of the drama etc and tallied the costs so by Autumn 2019 they were ready to go.
Here the Board started from an end goal (new school) ignored its facilities analysis, lied about the cost of the school and how it would be paid for to avoid voter scrutiny, and then created a fiscal crisis that makes their "hand tied" regarding the need to close a school.
Perhaps the intent was never to build a new school but instead to say they built a new school so they could get a dream job in Dekalb. Keep in mind that the Superintendent (May 2023), the CFO (August 2023), and the Board President (September 2022) at the time have all bounced elsewhere. It is the former Board President who signed the lease certificate.
This just shows the a$$ backwardness and incompetence of the Board and admin. In Skokie it started in 2016 with a comprehensive look at their facilities (admittedly it is less complex since they only have 3 schools, I think). They prioritized refurbs on a couple and then did the rebuild. They worked through all of the drama etc and tallied the costs so by Autumn 2019 they were ready to go.
Here the Board started from an end goal (new school) ignored its facilities analysis, lied about the cost of the school and how it would be paid for to avoid voter scrutiny, and then created a fiscal crisis that makes their "hand tied" regarding the need to close a school.
Perhaps the intent was never to build a new school but instead to say they built a new school so they could get a dream job in Dekalb. Keep in mind that the Superintendent (May 2023), the CFO (August 2023), and the Board President (September 2022) at the time have all bounced elsewhere. It is the former Board President who signed the lease certificate.