Property Owner Refuses To Sell To School District

Monday, October 1st 2007, 9:55 pm

By: News On 6

Jenks Public Schools says it needs more land to accommodate its growing student population, but the district has run into a roadblock. Jenks has its sites set on a piece of property, but the family it belongs to is refusing to sell. The News On 6â€™s Chris Wright reports the property the school wants is an old 40-acre homestead that has been vacant for decades. Still, its owners say it's not for sale.

Most people wouldn't see much when looking at the old, run-down homestead. But don't tell that to Ree Greenwood, whose family has owned it for more than a century.

"I see the house where my dad was born, and most of the siblings were born. I see a place where they had to go to town to get water in a wagon," property owner Ree Greenwood said.

Jenks West Elementary, which sits directly across the street, sees the vacant property as the answer to its space problems. Two thousand kids already go to school there, and enrollment is on the rise.

"As you can see, we're about full, as what we can do and still have playgrounds at the site, and we expect that growth to continue," Roger Wright of Jenks Public Schools said.

The district offered to buy the land, which has been vacant for more than 80 years, and is now home to only a few head of cattle. The family refused the offer, and now Jenks is moving to have the land condemned. Its owners say while the homestead may not look like much, it means the world to them.

"They're stealing our heritage from us. It isn't money, there's nothing to do with money," Greenwood said.

So now, the matter will be settled in the courts, and Ree says it will take just that, a court order to get her to sell.

"It's history, and you can't get it back once it's gone, you can't replace it,â€ property owner Ree Greenwood said. â€œThere's no 40-acres anywhere that we would trade this for."

Jenks Public Schools says it understands the family's attachment to its land, but it can't ignore West Elementary's need to expand. The owners of the homestead have already given Jenks schools land, selling 70-acres of their property to the district. They feel that contribution was enough, and Jenks should expand elsewhere.

Watch the video: School District In Property Battle

WEB EXTRA: Extended Interview With Property Owner Ree Greenwood