KENOSHA — Kenosha is preparing to tear down four former school buildings — Washington Middle School, McKinley, KTEC East and KTEC West, to make way for new development.
Residents living near the buildings say they feel left out of the process and are worried about what might replace the schools once demolition is complete.
One of those neighbors is John Mauser, who has lived next to Washington Middle School for 24 years.
“I went to school there, my kids went to school there, so it’s going to be kind of weird seeing it gone,” Mauser said.
Watch: Longtime neighbor says it will be strange to see Kenosha's Washington Middle School gone
According to a city notice, demolition will begin this winter, with site restoration expected by spring 2026. The plans call for KTEC East to become a new campus designed to improve traffic flow, while the Washington Middle School site is reserved for future development.
"There's nothing we can really do about it, you can only complain so much but they're going to do what they want to do in the end anyways," Mauser said. "I had hoped they would re-purpose the building at least."
At McKinley and KTEC West, neighbors said they were frustrated that they weren’t given more information up front.
“We’re all taxpayers and we’re all voters, and it doesn’t seem like they were interested in hearing what any of us had to say,” said resident Aimee Crucianelli. "Otherwise, they would’ve shared something about this a little bit sooner."
The City of Kenosha says residents can receive updates on demolition and redevelopment progress online.
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