Franklin school district, city head to court over $145M high school project

Franklin school district sues city over construction plans

Franklin Public Schools sued the city over new conditions added to its high school expansion plan.

FRANKLIN, Wis. - Franklin Public Schools is suing the city’s Common Council and Plan Commission, escalating a yearlong fight over conditions tied to a $145 million referendum to expand Franklin High School.

What we know:

The clash began after voters approved the referendum last November. The district later updated its plans, which include a fieldhouse, tennis courts, more parking and an extension of High View Drive – changes that require cutting eight acres of woods.

Neighbors argued the district moved the project closer to their homes than originally promised.

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City leaders believed they reached a compromise: leave a 150-foot wooded buffer and restrict the extended roadway to emergency vehicles only. But in a civil lawsuit, the district says the conditions violate its due process rights because it already met the requirements for a conditional use permit set in the ordinance.

A Tuesday night meeting of the Franklin Common Council looked to end the issue that had bubbled out of city government all the way to the courthouse. The council voted 5-0 with one abstention on a motion to proceed with a plan regarding the situation discussed in closed session.

"I don't like the optics. It divides us as a community," said John Nelson, Franklin’s mayor. "I thought we were gonna be able to come to some sort of resolution prior to going to legal action."

Dig deeper:

In August, a nearby resident named Ethan expressed frustration over the shifting plans.

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"I think they should just stick with what they originally said they would do and what we voted on," he said. "I mean, minor things are fine. That is not minor."

The school district broke ground on the first phase of the project last week.

"We want to make sure that we are acting within our boundary, that we are acting within our scope, and we're not exceeding that," said Nelson.

The district declined comment Tuesday night on the advice of its attorneys.