Two Norfolk City Council members expressed frustration Tuesday with the Norfolk School Board over the ongoing work to create a plan to close and consolidate city schools.
The School Board on Monday delayed a vote for the second time on a closure plan, barreling past a deadline set by the council to adopt a plan to close at least 10 schools.
Two council members urged the School Board to take decisive action soon and did not rule out dictating how the school system could use city funding during the next budget cycle.
“It’s not off the table,” said Norfolk Mayor Kenny Alexander. “It is on the table.”
At a special-called School Board meeting Monday, members created a new draft plan based on a timeline from David Sturtz, a Woolpert consultant hired to oversee the closure process, and the school district’s Chief Operations Officer Richard Fraley. Sturtz and Fraley created their plan following a Zoom meeting of the school district’s facilities and planning committee on Sept. 24. That meeting was not advertised to the public.
The council originally set an Aug. 1 deadline for a plan. Norfolk School Board Chair Sarah DiCalogero and Interim Superintendent James Pohl previously asked the city for an extension until Sept. 19.
During Monday’s meeting, DiCalogero suggested members vote on the new draft on Oct. 15 to give the public time to react to the proposal.
City Council member Carlos Clanton, who is also a former School Board member and chair, acknowledged the School Board delays and wondered whether the body would continue to “kick the can down the road.” He encouraged members to make a bold decision and recognize that it might not please everyone.
“You want deliberation, and that’s great, but you have got to make a decision,” Clanton said.
Clanton said the School Board needed to show that City Council could give them the level of trust required to continue the existing funding structure.
A joint meeting of the School Board and City Council is scheduled for Oct. 7. Alexander said he would recommend a delay of that meeting if the School Board has not voted on a closure plan by then.
Alexander, said he disapproved of a previous plan created by board members Tanya Bhasin and Jason Inge, saying he would prefer a plan created with involvement from engineering consultant Woolpert. He did not comment on the new plan.
In an emailed response, DiCalogero said the School Board had been working diligently to follow City Council guidance and had intended to share the current plan with the body on Oct. 7 before a final vote.
“We believed this would ensure that our proposal aligns with the criteria outlined in the City Council’s resolution,” DiCalogero said.
She also said the School Board was requesting that the city shift allocated capital improvement funding from Granby Elementary School and Norview Elementary School to other schools.
City Council Vice Mayor Martin Thomas and members Mamie Johnson, John J.P. Paige, Tommy Smigiel and Jeremy McGee did not respond to requests for comment Tuesday. Member Courtney Doyle declined to comment.
After years of discussion around closing Norfolk schools, City Council members approved a March resolution asking the School Board to create a plan to close at least 10 schools. The resolution also says the City Council may take punitive action against the School Board by beginning to dictate how city funding could by used by the district. Currently, the city gives the school system one lump sum every budget.
The plan introduced Monday would close: Ghent School, Tarrallton Elementary School, Willoughby Early Childhood Center, Granby Elementary School, P.B. Young Elementary School, Norview Elementary School, Berkley Early Childhood Center, Norfolk Southeastern Cooperative Educational Programs Center, and Norfolk Technical Center.
Unlike the previous school board-developed plan, it outlines a specific timeline for closures.
Willoughby and Norview would close at the beginning of the 2026-27 school year. Tarrallton, P.B. Young, Granby and Ghent School would close at the beginning of the 2027-28 school year. The Norfolk Southeastern Cooperative Educational Programs Center would close at the beginning of the 2028-29 school year. Berkley Early Childhood Center would close at the beginning of the 2029-30 school year and Norfolk Technical Center would close at the beginning of the 2030-31 school year.
The plans would move the Ghent program to the Academy of International Studies space at Rosemont Middle School. The Southeastern Cooperative Educational Program would move into Chesterfield Elementary School, with those students relocating to Jacox Elementary School and Richard Bowling Elementary School.
Lake Taylor High School, Jacox and either Suburban Park Elementary School or St. Helena Elementary School would be rebuilt under the plan.
Trevor Metcalfe, 757-222-5345, trevor.metcalfe@pilotonline.com
