Farmington Schools Lawsuit May Be Headed to Appeals Court

Residents whose suit against (FPS) over to the Islamic Cultural Association (ICA) was may take their case to a higher court.

A press release issued Tuesday by Robert C. Davis of Davis Listman Brennan in Mt. Clemens reported that plaintiffs Eugene Greenstein and Melvin Sternfeld are "exploring their rights to another appellate review by the Michigan Court of Appeals or the Michigan Supreme Court."

The press release pointed out that because Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Rae Lee Chabot ruled the defendants did not demonstrate they would be harmed by sale of the closed building, the case was never heard on its merits.

"The District Board is an elected body and must answer to the taxpayers of the District," the press release read. "If a local real estate expert who lives in the District and was lied to about the fate of Eagle Elementary has no standing to challenge the sale procedure—what taxpaying member of the District does?"

The suit alleged that retired FPS director of operational services Cheryl Cannon misled Sternfeld when she said that Eagle was not for sale and represented the building as scheduled for demolition, even after the ICA offer. The plaintiffs claimed they would be negatively affected because they live near the property, and that Sternfeld, a real estate broker, had an interest because stopping the sale would allow him and his clients to bid on the project.

FPS officials affirming their position that they followed their procedures. In a previous interview with Farmington-Farmington Hills Patch, Assistant Superintendent David Ruhland pointed out that officials have received no other purchase offers for the site.

The sale netted the district $1.1 million and saved demolition costs, he said.