LAKEWOOD, Ohio — After settling a lawsuit, Lakewood City Schools will now revisit its vote to repurpose Lincoln Elementary into an early learning center.
The community group Friends of Lakewood filed the lawsuit over the board's alleged violations of Ohio's Open Meetings Act.
"We filed essentially because of the governance issues. The school board had made this decision behind closed doors and decided to move forward with that, despite a lot of legitimate public questions," said Friends of Lakewood board member Jeff McCourt.
Following the settlement, the board released a statement in early August saying it did not settle because of any wrongdoing.
"While the Board is unable at this juncture to comment in a more robust manner on the terms of the settlement, it is important to the Board that the community knows that the Board did not resolve the litigation because it felt it did anything wrong in the events that led to the Board's approval of the superintendent's recommendation to repurpose Lincoln Elementary School. Rather, the Board approved the settlement because it is mindful of its obligations to be a careful steward of the taxpayer money that largely funds the District and its educational programming, and resolving the case now avoids the significant time and expense that comes along with protracted litigation," the statement read.
As part of the settlement, the board must hold at least two public meetings about the school's repurposing, complete Open Meetings Act training and hold a new vote, which cannot take place before Sept. 4.
McCourt feels the Lakewood City Schools district still isn't being transparent in its decision-making process on repurposing Lincoln Elementary, even after the group settled its lawsuit against the board.
"It appears so. We'll see what happens on September 8, and you know what the school board does. But the presentations that we saw over the prior two meetings were essentially repackaged data from the same October presentation, and really no new analysis," McCourt said.
McCourt said Sept. 4 is only a minimum threshold and that a vote on Sept. 8 is still happening too quickly.
"The best thing that the school board can do on September 8th at the next meeting is to take a deep breath and realize whatever happened before is in the past, and what needs to happen next is proper planning, transparent governance, good faith dialogue with the community to get to the right answers," McCourt said.
Mayor Meghan George also weighed in, writing a letter to the board asking them to reconsider repurposing Lincoln Elementary into a centralized preschool site, citing traffic and transportation concerns.
"I am asking that we pause the vote so we can work together to develop a solution that addresses these issues and aligns with Lakewood's long-term goals around walkability, neighborhood schools, family retention, and traffic management," George said.
Friends of Lakewood agrees.
"Pause this process. Go back to the drawing board. Show your homework to the community. That's all we're asking for," McCourt said.
The district declined to comment on the upcoming vote.
You can read the mayor's full letter below:
Good afternoon, Superintendent Niedzwiecki and School Board Members,
I am reaching out to request a meeting to discuss the proposed plan to close Lincoln Elementary School and convert it into a centralized preschool.
A centralized preschool model runs counter to the goals outlined in Lakewood’s Active Transportation Plan—a plan the school district played a role in developing. The plan emphasizes neighborhood-based schools and walkable access for families. Today, the vast majority of Lakewood elementary students live within a 10-minute walk of their school, and Lincoln is one of the strongest walk-served campuses in the city. Consolidating preschool into a single site would significantly reduce walkable access for families with young children, who are the most sensitive to transportation barriers.
Research consistently shows that young families prioritize proximity to neighborhood schools when deciding where to live. National data shows that households with children under age 5 are 40% more likely to choose communities where schools are accessible by foot, and the National League of Cities notes that relocations from urban communities often spike when neighborhood school access is disrupted. Several residents have already expressed to me that this proposal is causing them to question their long-term plans to remain in Lakewood.
Traffic concerns are also substantial. Moving preschool enrollment to a single location will increase peak-hour vehicle trips across the community. This directly contradicts the Active Transportation Plan, which prioritizes reducing vehicle dependency and improving safe routes for families.
Additionally, this plan will create undue pressure on the City of Lakewood to fill the gaps created by removing a neighborhood-based elementary school. As families lose walkable access to preschool, the city will face increased demands for:
• Increased requests for crossing-guard deployment and Safe Routes to School infrastructure to support families who can no longer walk to a nearby preschool.
• Greater pressure on city social-service programs as families with limited transportation resources struggle to access early childhood education.
• Additional coordination and staffing demands between city departments and the school district to address new transportation patterns and congestion points created by consolidation.
• Increased strain on sustainability and emissions-reduction goals due to higher daily vehicle trips—directly countering our adopted community climate objectives.
• Potential need for expanded childcare support from the city, including partnerships or subsidies, if centralized preschool access proves challenging for families without reliable transportation.
Given the community implications, I am asking that we pause the vote so we can work together to develop a solution that addresses these issues and aligns with Lakewood’s long-term goals around walkability, neighborhood schools, family retention, and traffic management.
Nadeen Abusada is a Cuyahoga County and immigration reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow her on Instagram NadeenAbusada or email her at Nadeen.Abusada@wews.com.
