FWCS Board’s Unwillingness To Compromise Comes Back To Haunt Them
Posted by Jeff Pruitt - 7/30/08 @ 9:14 am - Filed Under 2008 Local Elections
FWCS has already depleted their emergency building funds for the year. When these stories of legitimate school needs arise readers need to remember two things (only one was mentioned in the JG story).
- The board still hasn’t held any substantive discussions on a new facilities plan this year.
- Last year the board turned down a proposal that would’ve given them $300 million to fix the vast majority of their facility-related problems. Instead they chose to gamble with our school infrastructure and went for the full $500 million property tax increase which was ultimately rejected by taxpayers during the petition drive.
It is unfortunate that the board majority’s shortsightedness allowed them to turn down such an obvious compromise and put our teachers and students in a precarious situation…
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5 Responses to “FWCS Board’s Unwillingness To Compromise Comes Back To Haunt Them”
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Just another inconvenient truth about the building project. $300 million would have fixed everything that was broken and then some.
Jeff,
Once again I must protest- NO ONE offered a compromise.
I find it interesting that you feel so strongly that asking for $500 Million was wrong (by the way, I signed the BLUE petition), but you can so confidently say that $300 Million is okay.
For the sake of discussion- what gives you that right? Why does the will of the “Code Blue” group carry more sway than that of elected officials?
Kevin,
There was a vote on a $300 million bond so clearly somebody offered the compromise.
I never said $300 million was ok but it was a compromise and it’s obviously better than $500 million.
I think the results of the petition drive clearly showed that the will of the Code Blue group was the will of the people on that issue. And I believe it is elected officials’ duty to carry out the will of the people…
Lockwood Marine offered the compromise on our behalf at the “public” (make that district employee) hearing at Anthis, which still ranks as the biggest farce I have ever witnessed. The offer had been agreed to prior to the meeting by four board members but only Jon and Mark voted for it.
Jeff and Evert have adequately answered the question of a compromise being offered but in the interest of full disclosure it needs to be said that Mark and I discussed this issue with several Community leaders and the 2 of us offered the compromise to other Board members(and felt we had it sold to four before the Administration began “working on the Board”) ,I offered it at the “hearing” and pledged Code Blue support for it, and a Board member (I think Mark but maybe Jon)made a motion to approve a $300 million plan which failed 5-2. I proposed it because I thought it was a lot better than 500 and even though I thought it was too much there was and is a clear need for some level of expenditure.I shouldn’t speak for Mark but I believe he felt that it made sense to prove to taxpayers that FWCS could spend a lesser amount well and wisely before asking for more-with that I did and do agree. It is indeed a shame that the “all or nothing ” approach of the Administration and Board put us in the current situation and they have to bear the responsibility for that decision which was clearly not in tune with the Community’s feelings.It would be nice if we could use the terms accountability and responsibility about the FWCS system and Board more often !