I will be reading this at the upcoming school board meeting on Monday, September 28, 2026, at 5:00 p.m. held at the TCAPS Administration Building (2075 Cass Road, Traverse City, MI 49684), so time is of the essence:

Good evening members of the Board, my name is Rebecca Schubert and I am a resident and taxpayer in the district.

I am here tonight to voice my strong opposition to the planned demolition of the 1958 Traverse City Central High School gymnasium, that is scheduled to happen in June of 2027.  More importantly, I am here to question the transparency and integrity of how this decision was made.

When TCAPS put the 2024 Capital Bond Proposal before the voters, the administration campaigned on a platform of fixing 'nuts and bolts' infrastructure to keep students safe, warm, and dry. For Central High School, the public was told that bond funds would be used for remodeling, 'ADA accessibility upgrades,' and fixing security configurations. At no point during the public bond campaign did this district tell the taxpayers that their money would be used to entirely flatten a 68-year-old structurally sound building with significant historical value!!!  This gym is one of a kind, how many people have heard first timers walk in and praise how magnificent the space and the building is?
You CAN’T recreate this gym.

The board knows how to be clear when it wants to be. For the Central Grade School bond project, your public documentation explicitly paired the words 'reconstruction' and 'renovation'. You intentionally gave voters a transparent heads-up that a full structural rebuild was on the table for that site. Yet, for Central Highschool, you omitted any mention of 'reconstruction' or 'demolition,' only to quietly vote to demolish it later. 

Using voter-approved tax dollars—marketed as simple 'remodeling and upgrades'—to execute a full demolition feels like a bait-and-switch. Passing off a total demolition as the only solution to a fire road configuration, without having an open public debate before voting, undermines community trust.  Gym space is a must, and that can be accomplished simply by moving the ‘fire’ road to the east, building two gyms there, along with updating the existing main gym.  Maybe they should build the proposed Field House first, prior to addressing this building?  Where will all of these athletes practice and have games while this new building is being built? Future bond votes are at risk when public trust is broken!!!

I urge this board to pause the design phase, honor the original presentation of the bond language, and work with local preservationists to design an ADA-compliant renovation that saves our historic gym and creates more gym space.  

Thank you,

Rebecca

Please join me in the fight to save this historic gym, and sign this petition🥰