Suzette Cook
School Board of Alachua County (SBAC) Members Dr. Leanetta McNealy and Tina Certain requested a special meeting to discuss the land purchase of a 37-acre parcel in Jonesville that was approved by the SBAC at the May 5th regular meeting.
A petition sent out on May 9th with a goal of collecting at least 200 signatures received 225.
The petition requested an emergency meeting that needs to either be requested by the SBAC Chair Eileen Roy or by at least three SBAC board members to happen.
The parcel in question sold for $1,850,000 in December 2018. The SBAC agreed to purchase the property from Drake Land Holdings, LLC for $3,680,000.
“I’m really surprised,” said Dr. Carlee Simon of the Education Task Force (ETF) that started the petition.
“I currently have 225 signatures and I heard the board got over 80 emails saying to rescind the deal. I think they had one supporting the purchase.
“We are planning to continue our work investigating,” Simon said.
Emails requesting interviews of SBAC board members have not been returned at the time of publication.
This is a developing story, and will be updated as more details are known.