Grand Haven Area Public Schools (GHAPS) is planning to present two new bond proposals to the public on November 7, 2023. These two proposals are both subsets of the May 2023 failed proposal. Proposal 1 covers constructing a new middle school at Lincoln and 152nd, safety and security renovations in existing buildings, bathroom renovations, and bus upgrades. Proposal 2 includes a multipurpose building on the high school property, playground upgrades, and new musical instruments.
After the May bond proposal failed, GHAPS hired King Media to help them determine what went wrong. King Media found the community wanted the district to explore other options for Lakeshore Middle School, and wanted to be involved in the process.
King Media further stated:
The surveys showed many people did not know what would happen to Lakeshore Middle School if the bond proposal passed. District leadership had mentioned selling the property to a developer while at the same time having community meetings to determine what would happen to the property. People were confused.
As part of the paperwork for the May 2023 bond proposal, GHAPS was required to submit an Application for Preliminary Qualification of Bonds to the Michigan Department of Treasury. This application clearly shows what the district planned for Lakeshore Middle School. $100,000 was allocated for building demolition and site restoration. This contradicts the messaging from district leadership telling residents there would be town hall meetings so the decision-making team could get input from community members.
Before announcing they would be pursuing two new bond proposals on the November 7, 2023 ballot, GHAPS Superintendent Scott Grimes stated at the July 17, 2023, Board of Education (BOE) meeting,
“We probably have to have a better plan for the use of Lakeshore Middle School. If it passes, what will we do with that property/building?”
During the August 7, 2023 board of education program curriculum meeting, Superintendent Scott Grimes said the district would retain ownership of the property and turn it into green space for the community. Minutes later he proposed ideas of perhaps turning it into a preschool, or moving the district central office to that location.
Current GHAPS bond marketing materials tell voters the district plans to retain the Lakeshore property. However, the summary below shows $1.4 million has been allocated to demolish the existing building. When voters hear the commercials, saying the district plans to keep the “Lakeshore property” they may not recognize that the true intention appears to be to demolish the building, but keep the property as long as the current board remains.
In addition to this misleading information, voters should know that the November 7, 2023 bonds requested by the district are unqualified, versus state qualified bonds that were requested in May. Unqualified bonds do not require the same level of state oversight or preliminary paperwork submission.
An additional recommendation from the failed bond survey summary from King Media was that GHAPS not present a new bond proposal to the community in November 2023. King Media explained, “The community clearly wants more conversation, evaluation of options, impact studies and plans for the existing site if a move is necessary. This process can’t feel rushed or superficial –it has to be thoughtful, genuine and intentional.”
GHAPS likely paid a lot of money for these recommendations, yet they do not seem to be interested in taking the recommendations. Why attempt to push through a second split bond proposal so quickly? It seems to me that this is not so much about building a new school for the children of Grand Haven as it is about delaying disclosure of additional financial losses related to the embezzlement.