The Wildwood School Building Committee voted unanimously (with 2 abstentions) to support the W12 phased in construction plan to replace both Wildwood and Fort River in one fell swoop with the state picking up 53% of the costs.
Nick Yaffe made the motion to support W12
The motion to support this one of final four plans was made by current Wildwood principal Nick Yaffe, seconded by Superintendent Maria Geryk and then quickly supported by the vast majority of the large committee via a show of hands.
Wildwood Building Committee raises their hands for W12
A major attraction of W12 is its phased construction process that does not require "swing space" aka temporary classroom space for children displaced by construction.
A new building is constructed next to the current Wildwood and then all the children are moved into the new building. Wildwood is then demolished and the other half of the project is completed.
Amherst Town Meeting (by a two thirds vote) will need to approve a debt exclusion Override this coming fall to fund the project, then the Select Board has to vote to place it on the 2017 annual ballot where the voters have the final say.
46 comments:
VOTE NO!!!
NOOOO!
Why demolish the existing school? That sounds pretty wasteful to me.
Larry, could I kindly ask for your thoughts on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 passing), as to the chances of the override by town meeting and then the go ahead by voters? Thank you.
The proposed bus access is beyond asinine -- and think parents won't cut off exiting busses? Busses making turns into their blind areas, children off the sidewalk & into the roadway - possibly going under busses to retrieve things or to avoid bullies. And these are 2nd graders.
That design will kill children. I say this as one who drove a schoolbus -- this design is unsafe!
Hold off on the "school shooter" paranoia and think traffic safety for a minute here. children will die, run over by their own school bus. It does happen....
Wow that's a lot of money! is the current building really that bad? I'll be voting no, our taxes are out of control already!
the current building is that bad, and plus it was designed to teach regular ed kids; the plan when wildwood and fort river were built was to send the kids with the most needs elsewhere, out of sight. plus many kids in town today with special educational needs did not live here when ww and fr were designed and built. those who support keeping and remodeling wildwood and fort river are implicitly supporting an outdated and ineffective model for ALL our kids.
No, the current buildings are NOT that bad. My kids have done great there. WW and FR are both quite outsized for their current populations. So big, in fact, that the absurd, gold plated, outrageously overpriced "renovation" plan the architects put forth for WW has a large new courtyard cut out of the middle of the school...
So, here's an IDEA, let's divide up the quads, replace the HVAC systems and add some technology infrastructure to WW and FR for a fraction of the proposed costs. THe state will pay for WW, and the town can do FR for a fraction of our "share" of the new megaschool.
These are good schools, and then, they would be great.
-current elementary parent
anon@8:26 the model chosen, grade reconfiguation, was not the only option that would address those issues that you note.
I believe there is virtually no chance of this being funded by the means described (2/3 TM + override). Is there a more reasonable "Plan B" being pursued when (if) this "absurd, gold plated, outrageously overpriced "renovation" plan" fails?
This isn't about an existing building. It's about the future. Amherst can not afford a new school. The state will give Amherst money if they comply with some rules. That means a big school building. Whoever thinks this decision is about whether the current building is acceptable is missing the point. Fix up a school system with money we don't have, or build a fancy new building with state money. Liberals love to live off the state even at the expense of anything else that is important.
Very good point. I hope they are pursuing a plan B. For instance keeping the twin k-6 school option on the table. I suspect though that we'll be given an all or nothing chose and it'll be framed as "if you don't vote for this we get nothing from the state and it'll cost the town more in the long run". I hope people are prepared to resign if this is the case and it gets voted down. How many millions in so consultant fees will be wasted also.
These are the same sounds I heard when they built Fort river school. Get with it kiddies, shit wears out! Time to replace, not throw money at worn out things. I wonder if they said the same thing when they built the Junior High and Wildwood.
Fact: If most of the children attending a school arrive/depart via vehicles -- parental cars & school busses -- you gotta pave a whole lot more land than they are planning to pave.
Building this school will impact the traffic in the neighborhood as much as a shopping mall would -- they clearly haven't done any traffic studies, have they?
It's shocking that the Wildwood rebuilding committee stocked with district employees supported the unpopular plan of the central office. And ignored all other options and ideas and financial figures. Amazing!
To quote someone here, the Amherst school administration is a clown car -an implausibly large number of clowns emerging from a very small car, to humorous effect.
Don't you get it, it's a done deal. The vote means nothing/nil. This is how government works. Man you guys
are DENSE.
Don't you get it, it's a done deal. The vote means nothing/nil. This is how government works. Man you guys
are DENSE.
"Anonymous Dr. Ed said...
That design will kill children. I say this as one who drove a schoolbus -- this design is unsafe!
Ha! Ha! Ed, You've claimed to be a counselor, fire inspector, electrician, now a school bus driver. Jack-of-all-trades, master of none.
Traffic (and pollution) is one thing that doesn't get mentioned enough with this ludicrous project. They'll be busing kids all over town. Kids from north of wildwood will be bused south to crocker farm and kids from south of crocker will be bused north to wildwood. Crazy! What will the town center be like at 8:30 when umass is in session!
Also, I presume lunch for these 750 kids will be from 10am to 3pm to get them herded through the shared cafeteria. I say again, Ludicrous!
Ed, there is far less room at Fort River now and so far no deaths or injuries.
No way I can support this project. I had two kids go through wildwood and they did fine. I support small community schools not mega schools...and not higher taxes. Our rates are through the roof!
No dead children so far, Walter, -- but remember three things:
1: This involves two schools UNDER ONE ROOF -- You are talking two Fort Rivers combined, with an exposure to risk that is exponentially higher.
2: Aren't there some "Busses Only" signs at Fort River? Why might they be there?
3: Far fewer children will be walking than now -- NONE of the children currently walking to Fort River will be walking to WW-12. That means more vehicles in one schoolyard than both schools currently have.
Two other thoughts:
A: Those who haven't ever driven a school bus ought not be commenting on the judgment of those who have.
B: After today, I no longer care about the emotions of others -- I will ENJOY telling grieving parents that their child is dead because of stupidity that I warned about.
Amherst Delenda Est -- GMWIWAIWGA...
One other thing: I never said I was a "Counselor" == a "Student Affairs Professional" is something slightly different and facts do matter.
http://www.intellectualtakeout.org/blog/you-think-you-had-it-rough-school
In the 1960's, there were still schools with outhouses...
One other thought: Team Maria had a bus hit a pole last spring and then the 2008 fatality. http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2008/09/district_attorneys_office_iden.html
Take a look at that ADULT (MSP investigator) kneeling behind the bus and then remember how much smaller children are. And I am saying that the clusterf*** design is inevitably going to lead to tragedy. A totally preventable tragedy.
Or perhaps a CAR run over by a bus -- a bus having to swing wide to make those left turns and some parent (or grandparent) going into the blind spot on the right. If a bus is making a turn and a car comes in at an angle, it's possible to go from one blind spot to another without ever showing up on the mirror.
.B.
.U.
.S.
. .
. .
. .
It's not quite this bad, but you only can see a very narrow angle down the right side of the bus, and the same is true in terms of down -- you can see the outside edge of the outer rear tire, but not the ground in front of it, and definitely not what is in front of the inside rear tire. There usually is a blind spot between the door and rear axle -- the same is true of trucks -- it's possible for a car to get "under" the mirror and not be seen. The left side's not as bad, but this isn't a car.
You know (or should know) the turning radius of the vehicle and hence where your rear tires will go, and there wasn't anything/anyone there when you saw that pavement through the windshield. But that is all you will ever see....
I urge the Amherst School Committee and School Building Committee to adopt the bold option of a single pre-K through 12 building. The consolidations and reconfigurations promoted by the district are incomplete and inadequate. Only the courageous option of total consolidation makes all programs available to all children, with no diversity possible.
The obvious inequity of new buildings with markerspaces versus unfashionable ones aside, age discrimination is inevitable in a tri-building district. Football would be available only in the 7-12 school. Teachers cannot share across buildings, so Magna-tiles would be restricted to the early education center. Even with a single building, additional steps like increasing transportation times for students living close to school though bus holding patterns are essential.
Opponents may cite overwhelming majority opinion, credible scientific data, impact of a 45-minute commute on 6-year-olds and the environment, or inconsistencies in choosing the most expensive plan while rejecting other options as too costly. However, total consolidation addresses some downsides of partial consolidation options. For example, transitions are completely eliminated. In addition, my cousin lived in a single-school district in Alaska and liked it. Amherst should pioneer the next generation of pedagogical studies, not be beholden to them.
LOL, sounds about right anon@1028
We may be dense, good at least we don't post the same thing two times.
Ed a "Custodial Engineer" is still a janitor no matter how you try and spin it. Stick with your tiny crabs or whatever it is...
I respect janitors, although I've learned that if the bargaining unit calls them "Custodial Engineers", *I* need to as well. And I learned last winter that if I go out & help shovel, it's appreciated...
No way I can support this project. I had two kids go through wildwood and they did fine.
Do you seriously not get that while yours did "fine", many others could not even attend Wildwood, even though it was their "neighborhood school", because of a whole host of institutionalized barriers? Do you not understand that now that the schools have become more inclusive, that a design that did not take into consideration, at all, our current students with the most needs, is unacceptable?
If the Amherst elementary schools do not provide acceptable facilities for kids with special needs they violate the law and Amherst is legally obligated to provide those facilities or send them to schools that have those facilities and pay for that. Is that really what administrators are saying, that our elementary schools do not provide adequate schools for kids with special needs?
The administrators explained quite eloquently during their many and long presentations precisely how well they think the current architecture serves the students. 9:20, don't take my anonymous word or my explanation, listen to theirs. They've explained it many times to many groups now, including a final live presentation on TV that can be accessed very easily.
I have not heard any other complete, compelling or eloquent argument that contradicts theirs, so far.
or send them to schools that have those facilities and pay for that
Which would be cheaper.
Send them all up to Pelham, their school was built post-ADA and hence must be compliant.
In reply to 7:19
Both of my kids were on IEP's at Wildwood, which fits under the umbrella of special needs. Frankly, what made the difference for us was an awesome staff, especially Elaine Pearson, who retired a few years ago.
And there aren't outhouses today? Is there an outhouse study you're citing?
Anon 12:24, an IEP (Individual(ized) Educational Plan) IS "Special Needs."
It's not part of a larger group, it *IS* the group.
How many more good staff and programs could we add for $30+ million. What a big waste of tax payer money!
Kurt is that you?
so much for all the work and big sell of the 'regionalization'. Obviously all those plans are completely inconsistent with Amherst reconfiguring the grades. Are they even going to bother bringing it forward to TM?
Just vote "NO!"
6:36 PM: Contact Kurt directly to get your answer, he's easy to find, ask around.
Do you not understand that now that the schools have become more inclusive, that a design that did not take into consideration, at all, our current students with the most needs, is unacceptable?
Amazing how none of this came up when Mark's Meadow was closed. MM was built in the 1950's, I was surprised to see "knife" switches (essentially bare wires) in the auditorium, MM was a legacy of an era that truly wasn't inclusive.
We've now gone the other way, to an extreme that neither can nor should (nor will) be maintained.
MM was a legacy of an era that truly wasn't inclusive
And it was also the training and observation facility for the education department at UMass for a many many years, maybe that's why so many teachers indicate that they don't value equity, because they are stuck in a 1950's model: send the special needs kids elsewhere; detention, suspension, expulsion for the "bad" kids, Lumpy and the Beav get to learn about the first Thanksgiving without disruptions and while sitting quietly with their hands folded and facing the blackboard, and voilà, each kid's needs are met.
The deadline for submitting nominations for the open School Committee seats (to replace Rick Hood and Kathleen Traphagen) who are both stepping down is this Tuesday, Feb 9th.
I have very little about anyone running for those seats. Are there candidates? will there be an contest? I think that being an School Committee is one of the hardest jobs... I mean volunteer positions.... in this town. It's so much work and everyone is a critic.
In the next year, the School Committee will have some big decisions in front of it, including the proposed consolidation of the Amherst Middle School and High School.
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