Elementary School Not Finished For 1st Day, Parents Upset

ARLINGTON (CBSDFW.COM) - Wet weather and a delay in receiving construction supplies put construction of Peach Elementary School on Baird Farm Road in Arlington behind schedule.

Now some students are bused to another school while parents worry the children attending Peach are in an environment ill-suited for classes.

One parent said she had a bad feeling about her child's safety the minute they showed up for school.

"The front doors were closed because it's still under construction," said Krystal Green about taking her children to school the first time. "They had us go through the cafeteria. Walls aren't finished. It's all mostly drywall throughout most of the building."

The school district denied CBS11's request to shoot video in the building claiming it would disrupt classes. But a parent's cell video shows the part of the building housing Pre-K through 4th that appears to still need paint, tiles on floors and more.

Green has three kids at Peach Elementary. She said the unfinished work and construction equipment parked near the school behind plastic curtains make it unsafe for classes.

"What if that crane malfunctions and something happens and it runs into the building, you know?" Green asked.

"You know we try not to transition students within the school year," Arlington spokesperson Leslie Johnston said of the decision to start the school year with some students in the school. "And since parts of this building were at a state that it was just minor finishing touches, we are able to occupy those classrooms and the work will be done at night."

Daytime construction is limited to the empty wing of the school which is cordoned off from the students.

The district released pictures of the superintendent visiting the school in the cafeteria and a classroom with student and teachers. They show some bare walls and lack of cabinets in the classroom. But the district said it also shows a functioning school.

"I've been out there both days this week and the classroom instruction is continuing just as it would in a classroom that is completely finished," Johnston said.

Green said an assistant superintendent reached out to her Tuesday. She was told the fire Marshall is at the school every day making sure the work on the school is safe. But she said she still feels uneasy about sending her kids here.