Faith is a wonderful thing, a force that can move mountains. The question in Highland Park is whether faith is reason enough for a school district with no students and few employees to shell out $1 million for a virtually abandoned collection of old buildings that are more art wreck-o than Art Deco.
This debate is playing out in one of the state's most challenged school districts as a majority of the board is prepared to fork over more than $1 million for a building the district sold for $90,000 less than a decade ago. If it seems like the district sold the building for a song back in 2015, consider that $72,000 of the sale price was used to pay off the district's water bill. So, you could say the buildings themselves sold for only $18,000, meaning the district is willing to pay 5,000% more than it received to buy them back.
Of course, real estate values fluctuate. And the true value of anything is ultimately what someone else is willing to pay for it.
Still, I can't imagine a lot of taxpayers in perpetually cash-strapped Highland Park will be excited to learn their school board is about to pay 55 times more than it got for a collection of buildings at the corner of Woodward and Bartlett that have sat empty since the district sold them a decade ago.
Oh, and did I mention the buildings shouldn't even be there, because the buyer said back in 2015 he would demolish them to create "retail space?"
That's just one of the many twists in this tale about a deal that runs the risk of sending the district into bankruptcy not long after the state declared an end to the financial emergency that caused it to take over and, essentially, destroy the Highland Park school system.
So, today's study session will include a review of the rise and fall of Highland Park's once-mighty school district, a recap of the school board's debate over the merits of the deal, a look at the questionable credentials of an appraiser the district hired to advise it on the buildings' value, and, sadly, multiple examples of yet another public official's refusal to provide you and me with even basic answers to simple questions like: How many employees does the district have?
Why does that presumably small staff need to move from a tiny storefront in a strip mall to a 37,000-square-foot collection of raggedy buildings?
Has the district budgeted for renovations and, if so, where will it get the estimated $13 million needed to fix up the buildings if it buys them?
When does the district expect to have students again?
And, crucially: Does the old adage that a fool and his money are soon parted also apply to a school (district) and its money — which, of course, is really our money?
Polar Bear plunge
It's been a l-o-o-o-o-n-g time since Highland Park was the bougiest suburb in Michigan, flush with cash from tax money generated by Henry Ford's Model T plant and Chrysler's world headquarters. The schools and public library were architectural gems brimming with amenities that made them the envy of other municipalities. The Model T plant now sits abandoned along Woodward Avenue, a crumbling reminder of this city within a city's better days, and the library has been boarded-up for years.
Contributing to the erosion of Highland Park's tax base were population loss and Chrysler's decision to move its headquarters to Auburn Hills in the 1990s.
In 2007, according to the school district's website, about 3,900 students attended Highland Park schools, which had $26 million in revenues. By 2011, enrollment had plummeted to about 1,000 students and revenues plunged to $10 million. The district was spending more than it brought in and running massive deficits. In 2012, an emergency manager took over. The district's five schools were taken over by charter school operators and, over the next several years, three of the district's schools closed due to declining enrollment. The high school, home of the Polar Bears, was among the casualties.
In 2018, the last emergency manager declared that the district was making enough progress on its financial problems to return the district to local control.
However, the domain over which school board members regained power was vastly diminished.
Under emergency management, school buildings — like the former administration buildings at 20-32 Bartlett — were sold or demolished. Turning the schools over to charters left the district with no students and few employees. Today, the district is headquartered in a tidy rented space in a strip mall along Woodward Avenue, where its neighbors include The Tax Kings, Maxx Beauty and Asian Corned Beef. Highland Park Schools Chief Executive Isaiah Pettway refused on multiple occasions to say how many people work for the district full-time, though the answer appears to be at least two: Assuming Pettway and the woman who answers the phone at the district office are full-timers.
I asked about the number of employees because they could be the first folks to move into the sprawling collection of buildings ranging from 20 Bartlett to 32 Bartlett if the district buys back its old headquarters complex.
The buildings look as if they haven't been touched in years — unless you count the rocks thrown through windows. But there shouldn't even be anything for miscreants to vandalize at the northwest corner of Bartlett and Woodward.
In 2015, before the school board approved the sale of 20-32 Bartlett, buyer Michael Curis said he would knock the buildings down "to create retail space." Curis, whose company owns the Woodward Place shopping center across the street from the Bartlett buildings, told me he didn't specify when the buildings would be demolished.
"We were working on numerous developments there," he said.
Highland Park city records show that Curis has another option for the property: a development that would require razing the hodgepodge of hovels and their crumbling parking lot to clear space to construct a sleek new gas station with two restaurants that would face Woodward.
Some board members see that possibility as a threat, which may be why they are in such a hurry to close their own deal with Curis.
Stepping out — or stepping off?
Where others see potential disaster, Highland Park School Board President Janet Spight-White sees her district's destiny.
"It's for the betterment of the community, adults, children and the board," she said during the board's May 23 meeting, urging her colleagues to approve spending more than $1 million to buy back the district's old headquarters.
Board secretary Linda Wheeler, who was on the board when it voted to sell the buildings, added: "I am willing to say that Highland Park is ready to move past the 21st century — and that move begins with the purchase of 20-30 Bartlett." (The addresses are actually 20-32 Bartlett, but board members often refer to the property as 20-30 Bartlett.)
"My dream, and, hopefully, one day, that whole street will be our educational campus," Wheeler said. "It can happen. It can happen."
Wheeler's dream involves offering adult education and vocational training at the building. She said, without explanation, that buying the building will help the school district realize its goal of bringing back a high school in Highland Park. Neither Wheeler nor Spight-White responded to my calls and emails requesting an opportunity to discuss their positions and ambitions.
Board members Doris Harris and Cheryl Sanford told their colleagues they are concerned the deal could derail the district just as it's preparing to balance its books after more than a decade in debt.
"We don't have the money to rehab the facility," Sanford said at the May 23 meeting. "There's no plan for rehabbing, there's no plan for programming ... it also affects our ability to pay off our operating deficit."
Harris estimated it would cost $13 million to rehab the building.
"We are in a deficit and we don't have the money to invest in it right now," Harris warned her colleagues. "It's not good for us, it's not good for the district."
It's not clear where Harris' $13 million estimate came from, so I asked Pettway whether the district has budgeted for renovation or has plans for how to implement some of the programs Spight-White and Wheeler envision for 20-32 Bartlett. Pettway would not speak to me about the project or the district's plans. He also refused on multiple occasions to answer those and other questions about the project.
In between shouting at each other and agreeing that they still don't have answers to crucial questions, on May 23 the board voted 4-2 to purchase 20-32 Bartlett on the condition that they consult with state treasury department officials before moving forward. Members of the majority said they wanted to move quickly because they were worried the gas station or another educational entity would snag it. They did not name the entity.
When I spoke to board member Loren McGee last week about why he supported the deal, he struggled to strike a balance between wanting to show the community the district is making progress and being fiscally responsible.
"When you handle the taxpayers' money, you definitely can't say you're stepping out on faith," he said. "You have to have a plan."
That's quite a change from May 23, when McGee told his colleagues: "The only way I can justify buying 20-30 is you have to step out on faith."
When I pointed out the contradiction, he acknowledged it and said: "I do believe that you have to step out on faith."
McGee also offered: "Life ... it ain't all rainbows and unicorns. I would hate for this to fail. But being scared can prevent you from moving forward. And I'd like to move forward."
One of the many questions swirling around this deal is whether that step will carry the district forward ... or off a cliff.
The answer may lie in whether the district is paying a fair price for 20-32 Bartlett.
A full appraisal
After reviewing records detailing multiple Highland Park school board meetings and speaking to board members, it's still not clear to me who — if anyone — is negotiating on behalf of the district. When I asked Pettway who is representing the board in negotiations with Curis he, again, refused to answer. He did say, in an email, that the board: "has not yet negotiated terms of that purchase with the seller."
Maybe so. But even if negotiations haven't started, there doesn't seem to be much mystery about how much the district is willing to pay. After all, the board already voted to spend more than $1 million to buy the property.
Perhaps some board members think that's a fair price because the district has two appraisals valuing the property at around $1.4 million. One of the appraisals came from Curis, the seller. The other was done for the district by an appraiser who state records indicate is not licensed to do commercial appraisals and who has twice been disciplined by state regulators. More on him in a minute.
With a seller motivated to get the best price he can, and a district in a rush to fork over a pile of taxpayer money, I figured it would be good to get an objective perspective on the value of the property. So, on Thursday I met Mark Sheppell, a licensed general real estate appraiser, at 20-32 Bartlett. I also shared the appraisals done for Curis and the district with Sheppell, who has been appraising properties since 1986.
Sheppell was skeptical of the appraisals, citing factors such as the properties used to assess the value of 20-32 Bartlett. The district's appraiser, for example, compared the long-vacant building to much newer retail buildings which are occupied. Sheppell said retail properties generally have higher values than office and warehouse spaces like 20-32 Bartlett. And, unlike the Bartlett buildings, they haven't been vacant for years and don't require extensive renovations and repairs.
When I asked Sheppell how much he thought the buildings were worth, he said his certification prohibits him from giving a figure without having access to the building. The appraisals he reviewed included details and photos about the interior, however. Still, Sheppell would only say: "I would be open to an alternate value."
Curis told me he believes the district is getting a bargain and that his appraiser, Integra Realty Resources of Detroit, would not risk its reputation by providing an inaccurate estimate.
"We're selling at 30% below appaisal," he said, adding, "We used the biggest and best real estate appraisal company in Michigan."
The district's appraisal came in slightly higher than the one done for Curis. It was done by Harold Morgan of Ecentury Appraisal Services, which is located in Flint. Sheppell pointed out, however, that Morgan is only licensed to evaluate residential properties.
Morgan declined to discuss his assessment with me or why he believes his residential appraisal license allows him to evaluate commercial real estate. Before he hung up on me, he said he would not discuss his license until I did some research into real estate appraisal licensing. In the course of doing that research, I found that the state's bureau of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, which regulates real estate appraisers, disciplined Morgan twice over the last 15 years.
In 2009, the state reprimanded and fined Morgan. The state took action again in 2021, this time suspending and fining Morgan. Details about the disciplinary action were not available on the state's website and an agency spokesperson did not return my message Friday. That left Morgan to shed light on the matter.
When I called him back to share my research, he hung up on me again.
I understand the board's desire to send a message that they are serious about turning the district around and optimistic about its future. But if their gesture involves paying too much for a dilipaidated building and putting the district at risk of a return to financial ruin, board members may want to consider what kind of message they're really sending — especially to taxpayers who have been burned too many times already.
M.L. Elrick is a Pulitzer Prize- and Emmy Award-winning investigative reporter and host of the ML's Soul of Detroit podcast. Contact him at mlelrick@freepress.com or follow him on X at @elrick, Facebook at ML Elrick and Instagram at ml_elrick.
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