FORT MYERS BEACH, Fla — A big update on the future of Fort Myers Beach Elementary, which is still sitting empty because of hurricane damage.
Fox 4’s Fort Myers Beach Community Correspondent Austin Schargorodski has been following this story and learned Monday that town leaders say the Lee County School District does not want to put any money toward a new school on the island.
Watch to hear details about the district's letter to FMB Town Council:
Town Manager Will McKannay said he received a letter from the district with that update. Schargorodski also received the same letter through a records request.
In the letter, the district said it would allow the town to buy the old school property and set up a charter school there. But it also said the district can’t put any money toward a new school because the FEMA dollars the town asked for are already being used to pay off a loan.
Mayor Dan Allers had strong words after reading the letter. “When I saw that letter I was very disappointed. It was pretty much a slap in the face. I thought we were moving down the right road at that mediation meeting,” said Allers.
This follows months of dispute over the hurricane-damaged school. The district pushed for demolition and said it didn’t make sense to keep rebuilding after every major storm.
But the town fought to save the school and warned that demolition could cost the island millions in FEMA recovery money. At a mediation in November, the district agreed to consider spending 12 million dollars on a new school.
“Allow us to move forward. We feel that we’ve given them good opportunity to do that and we keep getting the same responses. It just seems like a stall tactic,” said Allers.
Allers says the school board, not just administrators, needs to weigh in. He also wants clarity on where the district is using the FEMA money instead of putting it toward a new school.
“I’m really hoping the school board will intervene now and be part of the solution so that we can all do what we want to do, move on, and get the kids back home where they belong,” said Allers.
Schargorodski reached out to the district and a spokesperson said they couldn’t fulfill the town’s request for the $12 million because they never had that money to give, and any further comment will come at their upcoming board meeting.
