‘Give me a solution’: Community wants Mount Charleston school repaired

MOUNT CHARLESTON — Clark County school officials met with the Mount Charleston community Thursday night to discuss potential solutions for the mountain’s beloved but flood-damaged rural school, Lundy Elementary.

Some options district staff and Mount Charleston residents suggested were using the Mount Charleston Library, where Thursday’s meeting was held, as an interim classroom or the town’s church. The district also mentioned portables and Xtreme Cubes, which are custom-made steel modular buildings, as potential options.

“How are we going to get our babies back up here?” Lundy mom Monique Sweeney asked. “Today’s a solution day. Give me a solution, please.”

The meeting followed a Board of Trustees June 27 decision to not take action on the district’s recommendation to close Lundy. At that meeting, trustees asked district officials to look for other possible solutions to keep Lundy open.

The small country school would have served 10 students in the 2023-2024 school year, but it was damaged by floodwaters from the remnants of Tropical Storm Hilary August 2023. Parents and supporters have argued that Lundy is a high-achieving school and said more than 10 students would be attending the elementary school in the coming years.

The CCSD leadership in attendance included Interim Superintendent Brenda Larsen-Mitchell and Trustees Lisa Guzman and Lisa Satory, as well as other district leaders who have been involved in construction walkthroughs, the recommendation to close, and now, the journey to finding solutions.

After a discussion regarding the district’s Lundy report, which it has repeated at multiple meetings over the summer, the conversation turned toward solving the problem.

Potential solutions and viability

Lundy supporters told CCSD that they want to see the school repaired or rebuilt and that any other option on the table would be temporary. Supporters also said they would prefer to use the church, as it already has built-in classrooms and a cafeteria.

However, every option — whether it’s the library, church or portables — has some drawbacks.

During winter, Mount Charleston experiences significant snowfall. For portables to be safe, they will need to be able to handle 100 pounds of snow load per square foot. Current district portables can hold 20 to 30 pounds per square foot, meaning portables for Mount Charleston would need to be transported to Nevada or be custom-made, said Brandon McLaughlin, assistant superintendent of construction and development.

The church presents a challenge because of insurance issues, said Jason Goudie, the district’s chief financial officer. Because Lundy is a public Clark County school and the church is private, the district would have to jump through more hurdles to allow students to use the building. Goudie said using the library would be easier.

The library is the most viable option, according to the district, and one that Mount Charleston residents seem to support. If the district were to use the library, it would have to work with the library district for approval, but the library district was “very enthusiastic” about the idea, according to McLaughlin.

Lundy supporters asked if their students would be able to attend school on the mountain during the 2024-2025 school year, set to begin Aug. 12. District officials couldn’t guarantee that but didn’t reject it either. They said getting children back up on the mountain for the school year might be difficult but not impossible.

Lundy discussions are on the agenda for the Board of Trustees work session Aug. 7.

Contact Ella Thompson at ethompson@reviewjournal.com. Follow @elladeethompson on X.