Below is the story from the Garden City Observor Garden City to - TopicsExpress

Below is the story from the Garden City Observor Garden City to tear down Burger School Plans are moving ahead to tear down the former Burger Junior High School after the Garden City school board approved participation in large bid through Wayne County RESA. The district stands to save more than $100,000 by being a part of the bid, which includes former Inkster Public schools, but the cost, a projected $490,000, is more than what the district had budgeted. A large portion of the cost is related to asbestos removal. “Do we want to save money and not demolish it and help the deficit plan or do we owe it to the community to demolish it and not have blight,” said Drew McMechan, the district’s chief financial officer. “Do we want to be responsible and not have a vacant building in the community?” The school was closed this summer when the district’s autistic program was moved to the closed Baylor Elementary in Inkster. IT is in needed of major repairs which the school district can’t afford. The roof leaks and, according to Bernie Rice, buildings and grounds supervisor, the school’s roof is leaking and the heavy rains in August caused the building to flood. “The kids would have needed a boat to get down the halls,” he said. Concern with charters There had been a concern about the building being acquired by a charter school which led to the decision to tear it down, but that issue was cleared up by a court ruling, opening the door to possibly delaying the demolition and not adding to the district’s deficit. “A charter school was our main concern and not having the money to fix it up,” said Superintendent Michelle Cline. “Our belief is that there’s a savings with doing the large bid with RESA. We could wait and go out ourselves, but it would cost us more.” The district has removed lights and doors to upgrade its other buildings, and law enforcement agencies and fire services have been using the school for training purposes. However, not demolishing it would mean boarding it up which would create an eyesore and issue for the district, Rice said. “Today we were contacted by a non-profit that was interested in the property. I told them it would be cheaper to build a new building than rehab Burger,” Cline said. “And they would have to buy it under market value.” A concern for the school board was the blight the boarded-up building would create in the community as well as liability. “We have to board it up, run the electricity and monitor it,” said Rice. “If one kid gets on the roof and falls through, the liability goes up.” “Marquette School was boarded up and scary for years and years,” said school board Treasurer John Thackaberry. “There’s a potential to sell it undervalue, but I see no reason to do that. I’d like to help non-profits, but we’re trying to stay alive.” Future development According to Cline, the property the school sits on has 29 land parcels that could be sold for residential housing and bring in tax revenue and new students. She estimated that the land had a value of about $300,000 which would be “an asset not a liability.” “I don’t see Burger ever making it back to a building of a level we would use,” she said. According to McMechan, the bid includes $45,000 for contingencies. If that money isn’t used, it would be returned to the district. However, the cost would still be more than the $400,000 that has been included in the budget. “We do have a responsibility to the community,” said Trustee Lorain Stover. “All of us would take a hit to our property values with this kind of blight in the community. I say we tear it down.” Under the bid, work would begin in February with the asbestos removal and would be completed by May.