Contentious School Board Meeting Leaves Zoning Critics Dissatisfied

Following several zoning workshops, where district officials gave numerous reasons for several of the current rezoning plans, quite a few speakers responded during the open comments section questioning the need for rezoning. Some raised concerns about a rumor circulating the media regarding the superintendent holding onto some of the 2007 bond funds (nearly 20 million dollars), some of which was ear-marked for land purchases for new schools in Telfair and elsewhere. There was no official response from the superintendent or other board members during that agenda item.

Related: "A New Territory resident who is a member of the Google group SMS BBE Zone, started as an effort to organize a protest of the division of the neighborhood, said in an e-mail to the group after the meeting that many people are missing the real issue of the story, which she said is that there aren’t enough students to fill the new school.

“I think it is natural for people to make the easy leap between “rezoning” and “overcrowding” and
the reporters so far have made portrayed this situation to be a result of “growing pains” in the district when in fact it is the exact opposite,” said Kathy Morrow in a message using the Google Group. “If Aliana and some of the other nearby developments had grown more in the last two years, like the district probably anticipated, we wouldn’t be faced with this. That part of the district has not grown enough to support this new school. It’s due to the economy – which of course nobody could have predicted.”

A speaker at the regular meeting asked the board not to use their children as “filler” to meet quotas for an under capacity school." Fort Bend Now

As additional media reports come in, they will be shared below:

http://www.39online.com/news/local/kiah-school-rezoning-story,0,7770411.story

http://www.khou.com/news/neighborhood-news/-Parents-complain-as-Fort-Bend-ISD-experiences-growing-pains--106940134.html

http://www.fortbendnow.com/2010/11/09/48864 (New zoning options presented)

http://www.fortbendnow.com/2010/11/09/48876

Background:

http://kathymorrowsterritorynews.blogspot.com/2010/10/new-territory-rallies-against-proposed_27.html