Long Beach : 23 Properties Near Wilson High Campus Condemned
In a 4-1 vote, the Board of Education this week condemned 23 properties near Wilson High School to make way for a new science building.
The volatile issue is headed next for court, where a group of homeowners plans to battle the Long Beach Unified School District to prevent their homes from being razed. The four-acre parcel is being sought to create athletic fields that would make room on the main campus for a new science building.
School board member Jerry Shultz, who agreed with the property owners, cast the dissenting vote. The plan, he said Wednesday, will create “the most expensive soccer field in the state of California.”
The area affected is bounded by 7th and 8th streets and Ximeno and Bennett avenues, directly across from Wilson High. Most homeowners there say they do not want to sell their properties, and several have argued that district officials are not offering them fair market value for their properties.
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