001session. >> Mike's on. >> I call to order this special session of the Oberlin City Schools Board of Education. >> Please call the role. >> Miss Anderson White >> here. Uh, >> Miss Gatston >> here. >> Miss George >> here. Miss Garrett here. Miss uh Stigle >> here. >> Okay. >> Can I get a motion to adopt the agenda? >> So moved. >> Second. >> It's been moved and seconded. Please call the role. >> One second. Okay. Uh Miss Anderson White. >> Yes. >> Miss Gadston? >> Yes. >> Miss George? >> Yes. >> Miss Garrett? Yes. Miss Steagle. >> Yes. >> Okay. >> So, we're going to go ahead into action items. On the agenda tonight is the approval of the resolution authorizing the execution of a disposition agreement with the city of Oberlin related
002to the sale by the board of education of the Eastwood Elementary School building located at 198 East College Street, Oberlin, Ohio. Can I get a motion? >> Uh, so moved. >> Second. >> Are we going to make statements? >> Yes. Now, um, now there will be any discussion amongst the board. >> Good. >> I'm sorry. Who moved and who second? >> I moved. She seconded. >> Okay. Well, I have something to say. Go ahead. >> Okay. And you'll have to bear with me because it's kind of long. >> I wanted the community to know why I am voting the way I am. And I wanted my sisters on the school board to understand why I am voting the way I am. There was a meeting last Tuesday at Prospect School so that we could listen
003to the concerns of members of the public regarding the sale of Eastwood School to YNU properties. I listened carefully to every statement. I listened for facts. I listened for conjecture. I listened for fear. And I listened for prejudice. I believe that as an elected official, it is my job to pay attention to the facts and make the best judgment I can based on the facts that are available. Here are the facts as I have come to understand them. I have been hearing for years that we need housing in Oberlin. I hear heartbreaking stories of people whose families have lived in Oberlin for generations and are now having to leave because they can't find affordable housing. There have been multiple groups showing interest in Eastwood briefly and then walking away. Eastwood has been vacant and draining
004public tax dollars for five and a half years. It has cost the school district approximately $55,000 to date. Is that right? These funds could have been used ed for educating, but instead they are using to keep windows boarded up, boilers running, and vandalism under control. As a former teacher and a parent, this troubles me. That money could better have been used enriching the educational experience of our children than simply maintaining a vacant building. Before the listening before the listening meeting, I heard from several individuals. One sent me two YouTube videos of Yosi Levy on podcasts supposedly as evidence of his nefarious intent. I watched both of those videos from the beginning to the end. Yosi sounded exactly the way he does when he talks to us. He's a businessman. I heard nothing that raised an
005alarm. Another person suggested that after they buy the building, they might put a bomb in it and blow it up. I heard multiple people at the listening session say that they are suspicious because Yosi and I are Israeli. By the way, Yosi was tuned into the city council meeting when Ebony read the council's beautiful statement welcoming immigrants. It brought tears to my eyes and I tell you it made me proud to be an Oberlinian. Yosi called me afterwards and said he didn't understand how we could proclaim to be welcoming of immigrants and at the same time be so suspicious of foreign developers. I looked into Y andu properties in Philadelphia. They have roughly 400 properties. None of them have been blown up. I looked into how many lawsuits they have against them. My husband suggested
006that if they had as low as six, that would be good. It turns out they have zero. I think this speaks volumes, especially considering how latigious Americans are. They have owned the Concord Manor for a year and have not blown it up to date. In fact, they have plans to completely renovate the building. I have walked through Eastwood with Yosi twice. I was pleasantly surprised to see how good the building looks. Yosi has blueprints and as we walked through the building, he enthusiastically ex described his vision for the place. He wants to turn each classroom into a one or twobedroom apartment. He insists that each apartment have outside windows. All the windows will be replaced as much as possible. they will preserve the look and feel of a school building. He wants to turn the
007cafeteria into a coffee shop, keep the gym, the computer room as a computing center, allow pets, and in include an indoor and outdoor dog park. As someone who spent a quarter of a century of my life in that building, I am overjoyed that this would be its next phase. The choice before the board to pass Eastwood to city council and let it be sold to the developers with both the vision and the uh for its future and the deep pockets to make this happen. uh or the or we can either do that or we can send the building to auction. By the way, this only provides uh permission structure for the sale of Eastwood. They could pull out at any time. Then we will have no choice but to go to auction. in which case
008we lose control of the building's future completely. And what if there are no biders? The district would be back to spending $10,000 a year to maintain it, taking resources away from children and teachers in this school. >> Thank you, Janet. Did anyone have anything else they wanted to add? >> Thank you, Janet. >> Well said. >> Thank you. >> No one else has anything. We'll go ahead and call the role. >> Oh. Um, that's me. Um, Miss Anderson White, >> yes. >> Miss Gatston, >> yes. >> Miss George, >> yes. >> Miss Garrett, yes. Miss Steie. >> Yes. >> Okay. >> So, now we will move on to future meetings. The next meeting of the board is our regular meeting on February 24th at 6 p.m. here at the elementary school. >> I'll entertain a
009motion to adjurnn. >> So, moved. >> Second. >> Uh, okay. Who second? >> Uh, we do. >> I You moved. >> I moved. >> And you second. Okay. Did seconded words. >> Please call the role. >> Okay. Uh, Miss Anderson White, >> yes. >> Miss Gadston, >> yes. >> Miss George, >> yes. >> Miss Garrett, yes. Miss Steagle, >> yes.