When Superintendent Malcolm Thomas was negotiating last month with Friendship Missionary Baptist Church over the sale of Brownsville Middle School, he failed to tell Pastor LuTimothy May, the school board and the public that was supporting the sale that the abandoned facility had a major piping issue.
The IN got copies of the water bills (ECUA bills ) through a public records request. The school that has been closed for more than three years normally is billed for around 50,000 gallons (Sept 2009 53,111). It’s October bill was for 466,783 gallons ($3533.14) and the November bill was for 1,370,429 gallons ($10,012.84). Rev. May has told us and the PNJ that Thomas, or his realtor, never mentioned the problem to him.
There is an handwritten note on the Nov. ECUA statement: “Leak identified and repaired mid-dec. JB Smith.” The PNJ reported on Saturday that the leak was only temporarily repaired and the actual repairs will start today.
Are the actual repairs being done now because the IN made the record request? Why did Superintendent Thomas push so hard for the sale by Dec. 31—-before the final repairs were to be made and the full extent of the damages known?
This isn’t how government should do business with its citizens.