Parents submit assessment report to school board to try to prevent closure of Lomond View Elementary

PLEASANT VIEW, Utah (ABC4) — Since Weber School District announced that it was considering closing Lomond View Elementary, parents and community members have been pushing back, and they’ve conducted their own assessment report to present to the school district.

“Really concerning to us that they’re seeking to shut down one of the top performing schools,” Michelle Jeffs, a parent with three children at Lomond View, said.

The report details the consequences of closing Lomond View on the community, like overcrowding neighboring schools, dismantling extracurricular programs, and waste investments without creating tax savings.

Lomond View is one of Weber School District’s top performing schools, but according to the district, closing it would save the district about $1.3 million per year in operating costs.

“The school that was built in 1959, one of our oldest buildings, and it is in need,” Weber School District public information and safety officer Lane Findlay told ABC4. “There’s some issues with the roof that need to be addressed. The seismic upgrades that would bring that building into code are rather expensive.”

Additionally, enrollment has declined slightly over the past few years. In 2020, there were 459 students, and in 2024 the number of students had gone down to 429.

A closure study on the school has been initiated, but they have not made the decision to close the school yet. The first meeting public comment meeting on that closure will take place on October 1.

If they do close Lomond View, students will be moved to Orchard Springs Elementary and other nearby schools, but some parents said that’s not a good option because of the population growth in the area.

“While there is room at Orchard Springs, there’s incredible growth here, and we’re working with the city to try to get data on all of the zoning changes, but from everything we’re looking at, there’s going to need to be a new school in the next few years,” Jeffs said.

Findlay disagreed with that assessment, saying that Orchard Springs is currently at 53% capacity. She said that since it opened, enrollment has stayed pretty steady at 440-465 students per year, and the permanent capacity is 875 students.

“Closing Lomond View risks lasting academic, social, and financial harm while offering little
in return. The school is not only excelling academically—it is strengthening community ties
and serving as a model of post-pandemic resilience,” the report reads.

It uses research to support its claims that impacts on the community would include overcrowding on neighboring schools, removing capacity for future population growth, wasting money without creating tax savings, dismantling academic environments and extracurricular programs, and undermining student well-being.

It also argues that closing Lomond View would disrupt the district’s stated priorities of stability and belonging, and that there are reasonable alternatives, like adjusting boundaries, relocating programs, and phased planning.

ABC4 has included the entirety of the report below.

Jonathan May contributed to this reporting.