Edina, Hopkins Schools Set to Discuss Boundary Change

A group of Edina residents whose children have attended Hopkins schools due to a discrepancy between city and school district boundary lines are celebrating a minor victory.

Due to boundary lines that have been around longer than almost all of the residents of Parkwood Knolls, 400 homes in the neighborhood are part of the Hopkins School District. Residents of the neighborhood—calling themselves Unite Edina 273—have been petitioning both districts for a change to those boundary lines, in hopes of their children attending school in their community of residence.

They scored a small victory this week, as officials with Edina and Hopkins school districts have agreed to meet Wednesday, April 18, to start a dialogue about possibly altering those century-old boundary lines.

See a map of the area in question here.

Unite Edina 273 Chair Alan Koehler said the group appreciates the "immediate and positive response" the Hopkins administrators demonstrated toward their most recent request for detachment.

“Our neighborhood has been unnecessarily divided by an out-of-date school district boundary that bears no relation to the communities of today," Koehler said. "This decision by Hopkins is a positive first step in a long overdue process to fully integrate our homes into the community in which we live.”

Edina Superintendent Ric Dressen said the goal of the meeting is to begin to frame the conversation and gather all pertinent data around the issue at hand before bringing it before their respective school boards.

"It's going to mostly be a fact-finding process, trying to get a good idea of what a change like this would mean for both of us," Dressen said. "It's also trying to see if there's a roadmap we can follow, provided this has occurred with any other neighboring school districts in Minnesota. It's really at the data collection point."

Given Edina's recent battles with a ballooning student population and overcrowding in some schools, Dressen said it's not yet clear how the addition of 400 homes would impact things.

"If they become our students, then we'd have the opportunity to figure that out," he said.

Dressen said there is no timeframe for when the conversation could make its way to the school board.

The move comes mere weeks after legislation intended to amend state statutes governing the process of land owners annexing to adjoining school districts made its way through the House of Representatives. Rep. Keith Downey (R-Edina) crafted the bill, which would allow residents to begin the annexation process provided they had permission from the annexing school district.

Downey said he decided to attempt resolving the issue legislatively because whenever he went door-to-door in the neighborhood it was the only thing he would hear about.

"The process has always been a little one-side and stacked against this group in Parkwood Knolls," Downey said. "The current law effectively gives the detachment district unilateral veto power over the process even starting. This change would simply allow them to start the petition process, though it's still a long road to haul."

The bill cleared the House of Representatives on a 73-57 vote, though it has not yet been heard in the Senate's Education Committee. Sen. Geoff Michel (R-Edina)—who has been carrying the bill through the Senate—said he expects a hearing in the Education Committee some time in the next week.

"We have had good conversations with members and staff and I am confident this bill will continue to move," Michel wrote in an email.

Koehler said the group truly appreciates the two legislators' efforts, but noted they have always thought "dialogue and agreement by the two districts is preferable to legislative action."

“We are very grateful for the leadership of Sen. Geoff Michel and Rep. Keith Downey in encouraging this district-to-district conversation to commence," he said.

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