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Community asks board for clarity on planned demolition of historic Gateway School building
Summary
A resident representing the Gateway Community Club told the Mesa County Valley School District No. 51 board that residents feel ‘‘misled’’ about plans to demolish the historic Gateway School building and asked whether the work was publicly bid, who won any contract and when demolition is scheduled.
Frederick Bolton, representing the Gateway Community Club, used the board’s public-comment period to push the Mesa County Valley School District No. 51 for detailed answers about the planned demolition of the historic Gateway School building.
Bolton said the community that began this inquiry is now constrained after a key representative was diagnosed with leukemia and that he stepped in with that person’s blessing. He told the board he distributed a packet and an addendum and urged trustees to read it and respond to a short list of questions.
The central issues Bolton asked the board and administration to answer were: whether district staff or an outside contractor will perform the demolition; if the district bid the demolition publicly and, if so, where the bid was posted; whether a contract has been awarded and, if it has, who won the work and what the demolition schedule is.
“We felt like we were being deceived concerning the historic school building,” Bolton said, adding the community has faced difficulty getting clear answers from district leadership.
Board leadership declined to answer the questions immediately during public comment, saying staff did not have the necessary documents on hand. The chair and superintendent said the district would collect information and email answers to Bolton and the board by the following day so the community would have a single, documented response.
The board did not take any formal action on the item during the meeting. Bolton said the community’s addendum includes an offer to pursue a motion to vacate if the district and community cannot reach a binding memorandum of understanding after improved, consistent communication.
Next steps: the board committed to providing the community with written answers via email the next day; no demolition contract or schedule was announced during the meeting.
