Board adds resolution to start sale-process for Franklin Elementary; parents pack meeting to oppose school repurposing

The Lakewood Board of Education added a first reading May 5 that would begin the legal steps needed to sell Franklin Elementary School, 13465 Franklin Avenue, and received a packed public-comment session with parents and residents urging the board not to repurpose or close neighborhood elementary schools.

During the building sites and major purchases report, Mr. Callahan told the board the administration recommended offering the Franklin property for sale and that Ohio law requires the board to pass a resolution and obtain an appraisal before a sale process can move forward.

"Ohio revised code requires the Board to pass this resolution and obtain an appraisal value for the property," Mr. Callahan said during the report. He said additional legal steps would follow, including first offering the property to certain charter schools with governing bodies in the district and then, if eligible, selling to another government entity or by public auction.

The board amended and adopted the meeting agenda at the start of the session to add the resolution and moved the Franklin sale item as a first read; action on the item is scheduled for the board's next monthly meeting. Several rental and use agreements for summer and school-year youth programs were presented on first read and are slated for formal approval at the subsequent meeting.

Public comment that followed the agenda and reports was dominated by parents and neighbors. Dozens of speakers urged the board to keep all seven of Lakewood's neighborhood elementary schools open, citing walkability, community cohesion, class-size equity, and safety concerns if students must cross major thoroughfares. Several speakers also questioned the process that produced the task force recommendations and asked for broader community engagement before any sale or repurposing.

"We voted for you. We didn't vote for a task force. We didn't vote for this superintendent. We voted for you to follow our — your job is to listen to us," said Peter Sackett, introduced in public comment as a 35-year resident. Other speakers expressed similar concerns that closing a school would damage neighborhood character and make daily attendance harder for families who chose Lakewood for its walkable, neighborhood schools.

District staff and board members repeated that no final decision had been taken at the meeting and that Ohio statutory steps are required before any sale. Superintendent Niedzwicki and board members said they would receive the task force's final report and that the board had not yet voted on any closure or repurposing plan.

What the board did: the Franklin sale resolution was added to the agenda and presented on first reading; the board did not take final action. Multiple rental agreements and a list of other building-use resolutions were presented on first read and will come back for vote at the board's next meeting.

Ending: The board will consider the Franklin resolution and the listed rental agreements at its next meeting; community members in the room called for additional transparency and for any sale or repurposing decision to be delayed until more data and community input are provided.