City council to discuss creation of new private school

Judah Christian School, an independent school in Champaign focused on enforcing Biblical values, is trying to build a new high school on Kirby Avenue and Rising Road.

At its regular meeting Tuesday night, the Champaign City Council will take a second chance to review the school’s relocation plan.

The school is currently located on North Prospect Avenue and is trying to buy 50 acres of land at Kirby Avenue and Rising Road.

At the Jan. 4 council meeting, the resolution approving this development failed with the votes ending in a 4-4-1 tie. Deborah Frank Feinen, council member at-large, abstained from the vote because one of the partners in her law firm represents the landowner, Jacob’s Landing.

The council has requested that the proposal be resubmitted for review at the study session.

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Tom Bruno, council member at-large, said he has been convinced since the last vote that the council should allow this resolution to pass. He added that the student body of Judah Christian comes from a broad population, not just in Champaign, so the move would actually make it easier for some people to attend the school.

Some of the council members opposed to the relocation had issues with putting the school on the edge of the city. Bruno said they would like to see the school built somewhere more within the city.

Jeff Marino is the city planner who has prepared the proposal for the council and said the building of the school would give a lot more people another avenue, besides public schools, to pursue education.

“The city staff supports the building of the school, and we feel any educational use is beneficial to the community,” Marino said.

Council members also raised the issue that the school would sit on 50 acres of land where residential lots had been planned. Judah Christian is a nonprofit organization, so it would not have to pay property taxes.

School officials and members of Jacob’s Landing will have a chance to speak with the council at the study session. The resolution needs at least six votes in favor in order to be moved to a future agenda before final approval.

“It will be interesting to see what new issues the council talks about tomorrow,” Marino said.

The city council will convene Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Champaign City Hall, 102 N. Neil St.