MOSES LAKE – In a press conference that Columbia Basin News was denied access to on Friday morning, Moses Lake School District announced that Groff Elementary School would remain closed for the 2025-2026 school year. The district also announced their intent to initiate legal action against the general contractor of the building citing ongoing issues with electrical, roofing, and ventilation systems, according to a press release sent after the press conference.
The district announced on March 7th that the building would be closed for the remainder school year and that students would be reassigned to other schools. That closure came after a person was allegedly injured by an electrical fault in the building.
According to the press release, an investigation with forensic construction experts was completed, leading the Board of Directors to vote on April 3 to authorize the lawsuit. The suit “will focus on holding the appropriate parties accountable and seeking recovery for the significant costs associated with repairing and remediating the building,” the release said.
The Groff Elementary debacle is yet another very public-facing scandal for a district already plagued by financial problems. A double levy failure and multimillion-dollar accounting error placed the district in jeopardy last year. Voters recently approved a new Educational Programs & Operations levy, but that funding will not begin flowing to the district until January. The announcement of construction defects at Groff brings new questions about district oversight.
Moses Lake School District did not respond to our request for information about the press conference until after it had already began. Ryan Shannon, Director of Commnications for the district, later questioned the credentials of our reporting staff and the legal status of our business. Columbia Basin News, LLC is duly registered with the Washington Secretary of State as a Limited Liability Company. He further questioned if our reporter “was a licensed member of the media.” There is no such licensure requirement anywhere in the United States.
Columbia basin News will keep following this story and we will provide updates as they become available. If you are a family affected by the closure of Groff Elementary, or a property taxpayer in the Moses Lake School District who has comments, please reach out to us at yourcolumbiabasin@gmail.com.
