Hundreds of residents urge Ann Arbor Board of Education to pause Thurston Elementary rebuild over flooding, habitat and safety concerns

At a Feb. 12 Ann Arbor Board of Education meeting, more than 100 community members urged trustees to pause or revise plans to build a new Thurston Elementary School on a site they say is flood‑prone and ecologically sensitive.

Hundreds of residents signed up to speak during the public‑comment period, which board staff said included 123 speakers; trustees set total public‑comment time at 45 minutes. Multiple residents told the board the district’s current proposal places the new building near Thurston Pond, risks flooding neighboring homes and would damage the Thurston Nature Center.

"Please pause this," said Gabriel Volsacek, identified in the meeting materials as an engineer, who asked the board to locate the new Thurston farther from the pond because prior local fixes had failed to stop flooding. Emily Davis Jackind, supervisor for Superior Township, told the board that "drowning is a leading cause of death for young children" and urged trustees to reconsider siting decisions that put students closer to open water.

Other speakers referenced district geotechnical and environmental studies they said were difficult to find and were released only after Freedom of Information Act requests. Neighbors and several engineers warned of soil instability, potential settlement where engineered fill would overlay compressible soils, and long‑term maintenance costs.

"The district's own studies outline the failure risks," a resident said, urging trustees that proceeding as planned "would violate your duty of care."

Trustees and district staff responded by agreeing to assemble technical materials and to hold a study session focused on Thurston. Trustee Vasquez — chairing the bond committee for the meeting — said the committee and capital team would convene a "deep study session" to address what she called allegations and to bring subject‑matter experts into public view. The chair also said the committee is converting to a committee‑of‑the‑whole format so the full board can review materials together in public.

Trustee Wilkerson asked staff to prepare one or more alternative plans, including viable staging options that could move some grades to nearby Logan schools temporarily. Trustees discussed timing constraints tied to upcoming RFPs and construction procurement; trustees and staff said they would try to schedule study sessions and additional meetings in the coming weeks so the board has information before any possible vote at its next regular meeting.

Supporters of the current plan also spoke. Some Thurston parents and neighbors said the aging school lacks air conditioning and other safety features and urged the board to begin construction without delay rather than risk years of further overcrowding and building deterioration.

What happens next

Trustees asked for written questions from board members to guide the study session so staff can prioritize technical responses. Bond committee leadership said it aims to hold study session(s) before the March bond meetings; trustees noted March 5 and March 19 as tentative bond‑committee dates discussed during the meeting. The board did not take a formal vote to pause construction at the Feb. 12 meeting.

The meeting materials and written public comments are posted in the board’s public‑comment section of the agenda.