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Wilson School District board approves eminent domain to acquire Westview Drive building to free 12 classrooms
Summary
The Wilson School District board voted unanimously to adopt a resolution authorizing condemnation of 2620 Westview Drive to relocate administrative staff off the high school campus and reclaim space for 12 classrooms; a union that had submitted a competing bid urged the board to reject the move.
The Wilson School District Board of Education voted 8-0 to approve a resolution authorizing condemnation by eminent domain of a building at 2620 Westview Drive, saying the district intends to relocate administrative staff there to free up space for 12 classrooms at the high school.
Superintendent Dr. Trickett said the district has pursued properties for six months and identified the Westview Drive building as the only viable, move-in-ready standalone site within the district boundaries. "We are looking to free up about enough space for 12 classrooms," Dr. Trickett said, adding the move would allow the district to relocate roughly 30 staff currently occupying administrative offices in the high school building.
The board heard public comment from Mark Pincus Savage, who identified himself as business manager of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 743. Savage said his organization had bid on the same property and asked the board to "vote no to the- eminent domain package that's on the table here." He told board members the union had invested money in inspections and appraisals and was close to closing on the property.
Board counsel Ms. Moravich explained the condemnation process in response to a board question: "Condemnation ... [is] a word used ... under the Pennsylvania constitution. Municipal entities school district entities have the power to be able to take property by condemnation," she said, adding the district would pass a board resolution, file documents in the court of common pleas and provide notice to owners.
Dr. Trickett told the board the district had made multiple offers and communications to the seller and other potential buyers, removed contingencies on an offer to strengthen its position, and drafted condemnation paperwork when negotiations failed. He said the district would recommend filing in the court of common pleas the morning after the vote if the resolution passed.
Board members asked whether the move would eliminate teacher sharing; Dr. Trickett replied it would "significantly improve the situation" but that he could not guarantee every teacher would have a private classroom in year one. Dr. Kennedy, a board member, acknowledged support for unions but said her priority is the students: "my first allegiance is to the kids of the school district, and we are in absolute desperate need of this space." The roll call recorded eight yes votes, zero no votes.
The district referenced board policy 903 in announcing public-participation rules for the meeting and cited the School Code and constitutional authority for the condemnation process during the discussion. Dr. Trickett said the long-term plan for the vacated space includes a twelfth-grade hub and expanded out-of-school learning and internship programs.
Next steps the district described include filing condemnation paperwork in the court of common pleas and sending notices to any owners; Dr. Trickett also said the district had signaled a willingness to "make all parties whole" in prior communications and that there may still be an opportunity to negotiate with interested parties before or after filing.
