More questions than answers surround the issue of closing a couple of schools in the Selma School System.

Those questions flavored with various facts about Byrd Elementary and the School of Discovery flew around the Pickard Auditorium Wednesday night during the first of four scheduled town hall meetings held by the Selma City School Board.

Officials of the school system know they have to close at least two schools and make other cuts to survive financially. Selma schools superintendent Don Jefferson proposed closing Byrd and the School of Discovery and the Phoenix School, an alternative school. The proposed closures would save about $500,000 a year, Jefferson has said.

But residents in the Old Town section of Selma, which is anchored by Byrd School, counter by saying the school is in a safe area of town, has never been broken into and in recent years was renovated.

School officials have countered, saying its declining enrollment makes Byrd School a target for closure. Its enrollment of 189 could be absorbed by Knox School, which is nearby, Jefferson has said.

Emery Hicks, who has started a website savebyrdschool.com, said he appreciated the give-and-take of the meeting. He was a little disappointed in the turnout, which seemed to be less than 100 people.

Some in the audience said they thought predicted rain; turning to sleet and snow Wednesday night might have affected the crowd.

Some school board members, like Brenda Obomanu, aren’t convinced closing down schools — any schools — will save the money forecast by Jefferson.

Speaking at the meeting, she said, for example, some savings realized by closing the schools would be eaten up by additional transportation costs to bus children across town to other schools.

Obomanu said she isn’t convinced the figures used to justify savings are accurate, and she wants more of an accounting.

“The bottom line is what we want to do is what is best for Selma,” she said. “I don’t want us to use scare tactics. Those old scare tactics won’t work.”