Open houses about Bellevue school consolidations being held this week

BELLEVUE — Bellevue parents say they were caught off guard when told of a plan to consolidate several of its elementary schools.

Phantom Lake is one of seven schools currently on a list of schools that could close. It’s also where the first of seven open houses will be held for families starting Monday.

School district officials say in-person student enrollment is down by almost 10%, following a nationwide trend where fewer students are enrolling in public schools.

The district is hosting open houses for all seven schools, so families and community members can voice their concerns.  However, parents KIRO 7 spoke with worry it’s too late for their voices to significantly affect the final decision.

“I hope that they’re listening or will listen. In the meeting, they said they are open to feedback from the community and doing further research and I hope that’s true,” said parent Wendy Rasmussen.

“If they are listening, they aren’t giving us a lot of time to voice our concerns,” said parent Stuart Reynolds.

The open houses will happen all week. A final recommendation is set to be made to the school board on Feb. 9.

The schools being considered for consolidation are Sherwood Forest, Woodridge, Wilburton, Ardmore, Eastgate, Enatai, and Phantom Lake.

The first two open houses will be held on Monday at 4:30 p.m. at Phantom Lake and 6 p.m. at Eastgate.

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