Demolition of old Klein HS begs questions of waste

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Call it the photo that launched a lot of comments on a community webpage in the Klein area.

Carol Wells drove past Klein High School recently, and saw the auditorium where she received an arts award years ago as a student was missing several walls, and bulldozers were peeling back more of the 40-year-old structure.

It was part of the old Klein High School, which is now overshadowed by its replacement on the same property -- a brand new building designed to accommodate increasing student enrollment.

Wells, though, questioned whether what she saw in the picture should be discarded. The old velvet stage drapes, auditorium chairs and more. In their comments, others questioned whether it was a waste of tax money and asked whether it should have been sold or donated.

It generated discussion and got the district's attention. The answer, it says, is state law that public property cannot be given away. Instead, the district made a deal that conforms to the law with the demolition company.

Klein ISD spokesperson Judy Riamto explained, "They're going to put the bricks in one pile, the steel in another and they'll sell it, and that's why they're doing it at a reduced price to our taxpayers."