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Oak Ridge parent urges board to keep historic school, presents neighborhood survey
Summary
At the April 1 Granite School District board meeting, Dr. Zachary Book, an Oak Ridge parent and board-certified emergency physician, urged the board not to close Oak Ridge Elementary and presented neighborhood survey results he says show strong local opposition.
Dr. Zachary Book, a board-certified emergency physician and Oak Ridge parent, told the Granite School District Board of Education on April 1 that local families strongly oppose closing Oak Ridge Elementary School and asked the board to preserve the mid‑century school and its campus.
Book said his neighborhood survey—which he described in remarks to the board as including more than 120 responding families but which later in his remarks he characterized as a smaller local survey figure—found heavy local resistance to a closure plan. "The overwhelming majority of the people that we have surveyed don't want any school closures in our neighborhood," Book said.
Book framed his argument in both historical and safety terms. He described Oak Ridge as a "historic mid century modern architectural gem" and said the school's view and setting inspired students, including himself. He also said the site sits north of the Wasatch Fault and, in his view, is less exposed to seismic risk than other district schools — a point he presented as a safety and preservation argument for keeping the building in use.
Book told the board that, from his reading of district condition indices, many district schools rate similarly and that he believes some previous presentations to the board may have overstated differences in facility condition. He asked the board to consider alternatives to closure, including redistributing students who now attend other nearby schools and reconsidering rebuild priorities.
The board did not take action during Book's comments. Book requested that his neighborhood data be shared with the district's PAC committee and other decisionmakers; he said his local poll showed high opposition to closing Oak Ridge but gave two different response counts during his presentation, a discrepancy he acknowledged in his remarks.
Board President Nicole McDermott thanked Book for his comments and moved on to later agenda items; no vote or staff direction on Oak Ridge closure was recorded in the meeting minutes.
Community members and board members told the board they would continue to collect information through district channels and community councils as the district's long‑range facilities discussion continues.
