School Board Land Deal Merits Watching
BY BUDDY NEVINS
This year – 2014 – could go down as the year of the charter school in Broward.
Dozens of Broward charters are in the planning stage and some existing ones are so popular, they have to turn away students.
All this comes at the expense of traditional public schools. About 40,000 students are predicted to attend charters next year, up from roughly 37,000 this school year. The majority of these students would normally be attending their neighborhood traditional school.
The Broward School Board approved 19 new charters in November, adding to the 95 already operating.
All these new charters, and the ones planned beyond 2014, need a place for their students, like the vacant 11.8-acre parcel at West Broward Boulevard and Hiatus Road.
Sources say that companies are looking at property for a new charter high school or K-12 school.
What’s ironic is that the property is owned by the School Board. It has been on the market for two years.
Lately the Board has gotten aggressive about selling the land, putting a large sign “For Sale” on the property.
The Plantation parcel was originally slated to hold an elementary school. It is too small for a traditional high school.
Charters, however, do not adhere to the same land and building footprint requirements as regular schools.
Sources say that Academica and Charter USA are interested. Both companies operate other schools in Broward and across the state.
The property is a stone throw from American Heritage private school, so the argument that a new charter is incompatible with the neighborhood wouldn’t hold water.
One warning for taxpayers: Watch the price tag placed on this land.
It was valued at $6.187 million in 2011 by the school system’s property folks.
But these are the same folks who got hoodwinked into buying millions of dollars of swampland in Southwest Ranches.
Chris Akagbosu is the school staff lifer in charge of this deal. Akagbosu was a school planner and then a growth management director, before being placed in charge of disposing of surplus property.
Broward schools have an atrocious record of poor planning. Some schools are horribly overcrowded thanks to poor planning. The School Board has at land it doesn’t need due to poor planning.
So Akagbosu is part of a system that hasn’t earned the public’s trust.
Based on the staff’s track record, I wouldn’t trust them to sell a used car, much less public property.
West Broward might need a nice, new charter school. That said, the public must get a fair price for the land.
School Board land being sold (click to enlarge)
January 1st, 2014 at 4:36 pm
At least Korn is there, she at least has experiecnce selling commercial real estate.
I wonder if Runcie will Take 5% off the price if the new owner agrees to put signs on the property in favor of his bond?
January 1st, 2014 at 4:49 pm
I do not believe that we should pay for these people’s kids to go to these ‘charter schools’, or to private schools because the parent feels the school is sub-standard. Again why should I have to pay to educate your kids ,because the school that your kid is suppose to be going for free, you feel its sub-standard so I have to pay for them to go to a charter school or private school where we pick up the tab. “No child left behind” was a disaster. I do not like paying for your kids. If you cannot afford children, and can’t afford to educate them, then don’t have them. Besides this school Bd. is so inept, so grossly mismanaged, etc is pathetic….
January 1st, 2014 at 5:44 pm
Walsh .. this is absolutely the stupidest thing you have ever said … and that’s saying something.
I’m guessing they’re not holding MENSA meetings in your hair salon these days?
January 1st, 2014 at 6:14 pm
It seems to me like there are many buildings being built in Plantation. The School Board may need that land in the future.
January 2nd, 2014 at 7:55 am
I live near this property. It has been listed for sale for years.
January 2nd, 2014 at 9:58 am
Public school is not free, it is paid from taxes. Rober just curious how much in local taxes do you pay annually?
January 2nd, 2014 at 10:22 am
Dear Mr. Walsh.
I fear you may be in need of some basic Grammar lessons so that you do not look foolish to any 10 year olds that might read your comments on Buddy’s blog when discussing schools and school funding.
I can only assume you are a product of the public school system which can from time to time let people slip through the cracks without becoming proficient in the basics of, oh lets say English.
Luckily for you there are free online resources where you can learn to properly speak English.
The following is a link to a free grammar lessons online that might help you to better express yourself, and not get made fun of so much.
http://englishgrammar101.com/
January 5th, 2014 at 3:56 pm
No private school for Robert walsh. Funny though I remember coming home one day and told my mother that my Irish friends that some of them where going to Boston College(BC). My mother stated to me “that I am not paying close to 20g(@ the time) for you to go to college w/ your friends esp. the girls ,who will help you cheat to get by. Yeah they all helped me w/ term papers, Chemistry, etc. I went to a public high school(Classical) that was a college prep etc. I wanted to be w/ my friends. They all helped me and I passed. They were all good to me. So up your ass. I still feel you want your kids to go to private schools-then you pay for it. So do I have an Ivy League education, not hardly. Still., I’ll go up against anyone of you, any day of the week……Although I do have a Masters Degree in “street JUSTICE”. Don’t I -some of you…
January 6th, 2014 at 8:24 am
Walsh;
Seems your Master’s in street justice didn’t come in handy when you were arrested….
January 7th, 2014 at 7:48 pm
# 9 oh you are sadly mistaken. Again w/ that damn felony. Go jerk off will ya. I mean really. Hell w/ you “ass-turd”-how fitting. I am now going for a drink to celebrate getting through this past year. Even missing Ft.Lau’ comm. meeting. I’ll be there in spirit…..