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Carmel school closing: What we know before tonight's recommendation

Co-interim superintendent Roger McMichael addresses a crowd of parents and community members during an informational meeting April 25 at Carmel Elementary School. Parents argued against the idea of closing the school as a response to expected declines in elementary enrollment.

Carmel families will hear administrators' recommendation on which, if any, elementary school to close during tonight's school board meeting.

This will be the public's first official idea of what could happen. So far, co-interim superintendent Roger McMichael has purposefully stayed vague while running community meetings, saying he wanted to hear public input before making up his mind.

Following McMichael's recommendation tonight, the board will take at least a month to consider his plan and vote during a following meeting, according to an email sent to parents Friday.

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The meeting starts at 7 p.m. in the district's administration building, 5201 E. Main St. There will be time for the public to address the board.

To recap, here's what we know about the future of Carmel's elementary schools so far: 

1. Orchard Park or Carmel Elementary are most likely to be closed. 

Most of the conversations regarding closings have revolved around these two schools, located in what parents call "the heart" of Carmel. 

McMichael brought up both in his initial presentation to the board on April 11, pointing out they are the district's oldest elementary buildings and both are due for major renovation soon. Since then he has held five community meetings, three at each middle school and one at Orchard Park and Carmel Elementary.

2. Every school will likely be affected.

During multiple presentations, McMichael said the district will likely need to redistrict students regardless of whether a school closes. 

Currently the district has seven elementaries east of Meridian Street and four west, but there are only about 700 more students on the east side. And the west side of the city is currently seeing more growth, with newer neighborhoods.

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3. Money isn't the main issue

During the community meetings, a few parents called on the city to give the district more money and asked McMichael to run another referendum to keep every elementary. But McMichael said he likely wouldn't pursue another referendum because cost isn't the main issue for the school; it's potentially having too much space.

"I doubt that I would try to persuade (voters) that we should take their money and increase the number of empty seats," he said.

The district already has nearly 300 fewer elementary students than its peak in 2011. By 2020, a demographic study predicted the district will have more than 400 fewer students, and almost 900 fewer by 2026.

That would mean in 2026, if no changes are made, the district would have about 1,400 fewer elementary students than its capacity, McMichael said, which is about the equivalent of two schools.

4. The timeline is still vague. 

McMichael previously said any construction would not be completed for another three years.

5. Parents do not want to lose their school.

Parents rallied within days to create the "Save Orchard Park" and "Save Carmel Elementary" groups, which both have hundreds of followers. Parents from both schools talked about losing a gathering place for the neighborhood, breaking up successful teaching staffs, enjoying the walkability of the nearby buildings and valuing the tradition of the oldest schools in the area. 

"I think it would be a major blow to the community to lose its school," said Orchard Park resident Elise Lindstrom.

6. This would be Carmel's first school closure.

For years the district struggled to keep up with the area's booming population growth, opening three new elementaries between 1989 and 1998. The last one built was West Clay, which opened in 2006. The district currently has more than 16,000 students in 11 elementaries, three middle schools and one high school. 

Call IndyStar reporter Emma Kate Fittes at (317) 513-7854. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter.

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