GothamSchools — daily independent reporting on NYC public schools

Yesterday, Elizabeth posted a letter from Comptroller William Thompson urging city officials to use millions of dollars earmarked for reopening a Brooklyn jail instead to build new schools.

But the comptroller isn’t the first to use the Brooklyn House of Detention as a pawn in an argument about schools.

Way back in January (Yes, it’s been a long year!), City Council member David Yassky, who represents the jail’s neighborhood, supported a plan that would renovate the building to include a new middle school, in addition to shops and jail cells. But after a sharp outcry from parents and other community members, the city killed the proposal quickly.