WILL Associate Counsel Lauren Greuel called the school’s decision a “slap in the face to the community,” citing cases of crime at the empty school building.
“The school district ought to prioritize the safety and concerns of the public before their own,” Greuel stated in a June 25 press release. “By not selling this vacant building, residents, taxpayers, and property owners are on the hook for lower land values and rising crime rates.”
The elementary school building is in the ideal location for STAA, several blocks away from its current middle and high school building in Marinette. The school’s current elementary building is in a different city, Peshtigo, which is about a 15-minute drive.
STAA has a long history in the area, according to its website. The academy was officially founded almost 20 years ago when it merged together local Catholic schools that had been in the area in some form for more than 100 years.
“We are not trying to take business away from them, we are simply trying to provide a better service for the students in this community already enrolled in our school,” she explained.
“While the district has discretion in determining to whom it would like to sell the Garfield property, it cannot continue to use taxpayer dollars to maintain the building it is not using,” WILL Counsel Cory Brewer and Greuel noted in their June 25 claim notice to the school district.
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