The sudden directive by Sacramento City Unified School District that California Montessori Project must abandon the Old Marshall Elementary School has done more than disrupt the lives of the students, parents and faculty. It has the potential to strike a major blow to the renaissance of the central city. One of the primary reasons families choose where they live is what schools are available. CMP had operated successfully out of the Pioneer Church for eight years. The site did limit the size of the enrollment. When SCUSD deemed Old Marshall School safe for charter school and offered it to CMP, after careful consideration they accepted the offer. CMP was thrilled to have a beautiful building that could be used for it's original purpose and they could expand to meet the strong demand for more student enrollment. Central city neighborhood leaders also expressed their enthusiasm for Old Marshall School returning as an elementary school with a program that attracted more families to Midtown and the surrounding area. This accelerated the trend of families moving in and the stabilizing effect they create.

The directive to move out of Old Marshall includes help moving and an alternative site. Unfortunately this school is far removed from the central city. At Tuesday night's CMP emergency board meeting, the accepting environment of Midtown and the CMP school was cited by sexual and racial minority parents as a prime reason for where they live. Many other families are the “New Urbanists”. They choose to live in neighborhoods that are reviving old homes, are mixed use and walkable. Having an excellent school that reflected their values is a major component of the mix. Now having their children bussed or having to drive them themselves creates new issues of safety and convenience.

What is to become of Old Marshall School is also a great concern to central city neighborhood leaders. If it sets empty it becomes a magnet for graffiti and vandalism. Will other uses be compatible with the neighborhood? Frankly the administration of the adult education program previously housed in the school was outright hostile to the neighborhood.

Many of us believe that SCUSD, the City of Sacramento and the neighborhoods need to work together to return Old Marshall School to being a high quality elementary school. The deficiencies in the building need to be clearly identified, the cost to remedy these deficiencies set out, and a plan to carry out fixing the problem developed. This needs to be done for the sake of a high quality historic building and a liveable central city. The SACOG Blueprint identifies the central city of Sacramento as the area with the largest amount of infill. To be successful families need to be part of this infill. Without the option of an excellent elementary school this will be very difficult.