Okay, just when you think something might finally be over, you find out it isn't.
I had a piece on the turbines and the DEP/Falmouth findings pretty much ready for today. But a phone call I received yesterday afternoon, and a bit of thought and some bits and pieces of follow-up caused a shift in direction.
Seems the Elementary School Building Committee was advised last night that the town has received a letter from the MSBA seeking clarification of certain matters. Matters raised by the folks concerning and whole host of things ranging from process to turbines.
I could go on a very detailed rant at this point in time on this issue. For now though I will just give the digest version of it, which will be long enough.
As an individual, I will not support spending one plugged nickel toward maintaining Rogers Elementary School as an elementary school beyond the expected occupancy date for the new consolidated school. Quite frankly, I am reaching the limit of even my infinite patience on the whole issue of that building.
For those who may feel they have the support of the town for maintaining three elementary schools if only all the "facts" were known, I would suggest you take a long and hard look at the results of the debt exclusion vote, where those votes came from, and sit and think about whether you could really get the support to spend the same amount to fix up the two existing schools in dire need of upgrade.
Oh that's right, I seem to recall some stating we can do it all for only $9 or $10 million.
At this point, I say well go for it.
As the saying goes, every rose has its thorn. The problem seems to remain just what aspect of this whole issue is the flower and which is the pricker.
I have been doing pretty good with predictions as of late. So while I am on a roll, I will throw out one or two more (maybe three).
1. One way or another, the town is going to end up with two elementary schools. This is one that you can pretty much go to the bank on.
If people want the "cheaper" alternative, I got the cheapest one of all. No new school, no renovations. Give them what they want.
Then let the proponents of three schools go back to Town Meeting and the Town as a whole, with their plan and try to get the money.
2. After that fails, when it comes time to decide which school gets closed in two years max., with or without a new plan, Rogers gets its door shut.
3. And my final prediction, if the new school project gets derailed, and when we go to two schools and Rogers gets shut down, it will be a very, very long time before the town votes to put spend even that one plugged nickel on preserving that defunct school building.
If you think maintaining three elementary schools is in the best interest of this town, if you feel somehow the voters were cheated by being misinformed, by all means continue your fight.
I for one have heard nothing to convince me to change my stance. While I learned never to say never, I cannot imagine anything new coming out that will convince me to otherwise.
Managing to somehow stop the project is not going to get me to support the much bandied alternative. Based on the spread of the votes the last time, I don't think there will be a whole lot of support for it either.
If this issues keeps smoldering, I think it is going to be time to turn the mirror around so to speak on the arguments against the consolidated school.
Hi John
ReplyDeleteThe town meeting vote on this issue was quite decisive, but if memory serves, the town vote passed by less than 150 votes. Not much of a spread.
I was in support of two schools even though I have to bus my daughter across town already (the bubble zone). I'm no longer active in this debate. I'm happy that we could walk to Oxford next year.
Hi Mat ~ I thought that if you live in the bubble area your child is to be provided transportation to the assigned school, unless you chose that your child attend the other of the two schools b/c he/she could be grandfathered in b/c of older siblings. No?
ReplyDeleteRegarding the issue at hand, I will always be a supporter of the combining of Wood & Rogers with the new school being built at the larger Sconticut Neck Rd site. As most people are aware I am a vocal advocate for the rights of special needs students, mostly because raising two of them for 17 years makes one a bit of an 'expert' in this area. In the current two buildings special needs students receive necessary and mandated services such as speech, physical & occupational therapies, medical interventions, psychological counseling as well as individual and small group educational support in very public places like the hallways, gyms, cafeterias and teacher work rooms. These types of services are supposed to be, by law, confidential and private. This happens multiple times at both locations each and every of the 180 school days. This is a disgrace and simply put, OUR TOWN DOES NOT SPEND THE MONEY ON WHAT WE MUST - THERE IS NOW WAY THAT WE SHOULD SPEND MONEY ON WHAT WE WANT.