DES MOINES, Iowa — Iowa's largest school district broke the law by not putting a multi-million dollar stadium proposal on a ballot for the public to vote on, according to a new lawsuit.
Des Moines Public Schools, in a partnership with Drake University, announced plans to build a roughly $20 million stadium in November 2019.
The school district would cover $15 million; Drake would cover about $5 million.
The new facility would host middle and high school football and soccer games, and be the home site for Drake soccer.
Parents voiced their displeasure with what they said was a process lacking transparency and a hefty price tag on the project.
The $15 million in DMPS "Secure an advanced vision for education" (SAVE) money was supposedly going to be used for an infrastructure upgrades, and an advisory committee never included the stadium's plans as part of the upgrades, the lawsuit against DMPS and its board members alleges.
"Plaintiffs do not believe a consolidated, faraway stadium is in the best interests of high school student-athletes, their families, and their fans," the lawsuit reads.
The school board approved the proposal in May, with Drake set to donate land and take responsibility for the stadium's upkeep.
According to the lawsuit, 7,120 signatures of the school district's "eligible electors" who opposed the stadium were collected. That would surpass the 30% threshold required to hold a public vote as tallied by the November 2019 school elections, in which 17,843 votes were cast.
Des Moines Public Schools issued the following statement to Local 5:
Iowa law is clear about the requirements for a petition to require an election. The plaintiffs simply did not meet that legal requirement, and the School Board proceeded with this important project according to state law. It’s unfortunate that time and money must now be spent on this issue, but we are confident in a successful outcome so that we can continue making sure students in Des Moines have access to high quality facilities like students elsewhere in Iowa.
Read the full lawsuit below