O'FALLON, Mo. • The Wentzville School District intends to move ahead with its plan for a new high school in O’Fallon even though the City Council has rejected it.

"We have the legal right to proceed," district spokesman Matt Deichmann said Friday after the school board voted unanimously Thursday night to continue with design and construction.

Deichmann added, however, that district officials still hope to reach an "amicable agreement" with the city on details although the district isn’t required to.

City spokesman Tom Drabelle also said talks would continue. He and City Attorney Kevin O’Keefe declined to comment on the legal issue.

The council on Jan. 12 voted 7-3 against issuing a permit for the new facility along Sommers Road south of Highway N after nearby residents complained.

Council members said the district’s plan to extend Paul Renaud Boulevard eastward through the school site to Sommers would bring Renaud too close to the back yards of residents.

Richard Sheets, deputy director of the Missouri Municipal League, said Friday that court rulings over the years have established that Missouri cities’ planning and zoning regulations don’t apply to school districts and other governments.

The Wentzville board’s attorney, Tom Mickes, had a similar view. He said district officials applied for the city permit anyway because they had wanted to work together with the city.

"The board’s hand was forced by the council’s action," Mickes added.

Deichmann said the district included Renaud in its plan only because the city had wanted the road extended. The city for years had planned for the extension to be further north but Deichmann said that would cut through the school complex.

"We could build this without Paul Renaud Boulevard," Deichmann said.

The new high school, funded by a property tax hike approved by voters last year, would be the third in the rapidly growing district. The school would cost about $40 million and accommodate up to 1,200 students.

 

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