95 Cedar Road
Longmeadow, MA
01106 – 3241
(413) 567 - 6315
To the Editor:
I am writing to thank you for your excellent coverage of the new high school question in Longmeadow. I think that you have been fair to all sides.
However, I have become convinced that one side has the superior claim to our support because of their reliance on logic, science and due process. I support a Yes vote for the new high school project in Longmeadow.
The recommendation for building a new high school for Longmeadow was based on a serious examination of the existing building. The engineers and architects were asked to evaluate the existing building for a renovation or a rebuild. After going through the building in a careful and systematic manner, they presented a number of alternatives. The soundest recommendation was to build a new building with a partial renovation of part of the existing building. The recommendation was made on the basis of science, logic and transparent due process.
Any attempt to do a cheap renovation of $5million would not do the building or the town much good. There is simply too much wrong with the existing building to fix with a cheap renovation. We are talking about asbestos, lead paint, antiquated heating and ventilation, inadequate air conditioning, energy waste and related inefficiencies.
A number of the opponents of a new high school are people who served in Longmeadow’s Town government over the last few decades. While they were serving their watch, the school buildings of the town were deteriorating. (This is along with other public buildings and the roads and sidewalks of the town.) Where was their concern for renovation and maintenance when they were supposedly serving the public interest? It was non-existent. Instead we were given prideful boasts about how the taxes were kept low and over rides were avoided.
Any responsible public servant will honestly discuss the need for expenditures and revenues with the voters and not simply ignore the realities of municipal life and disregard the effects of time and New England weather on our physical infrastructure. Their miserly approach to local government is very much a part of the problems we face today.
The sensible solution to our current situation is to remember the past and work to shape the future. A YES vote for the Longmeadow High School project will do just that.
Sincerely,
John J. Fitzgerald
2 comments:
Very well said.
I think the shortcoming of the analysis above is a discussion of the long term cost implications of issuing a bond right now to cover the cost of building a new school. Granted, the author does make some interesting points about how LHS was neglected during the town's super-duper elementary school boom.
He states that out of the recent engineer/architect evaluation of the building: "the soundest recommendation was to build a new building with a partial renovation of part of the existing building. The recommendation was made on the basis of science, logic and transparent due process."
No one is arguing against the idea that building a new school architecturally makes the most sense. The issue is one of finance. Were there any financial minds taking part in the evaluative process?
The central item that needs to be considered is this: What is a reasonable % of the town's budget that should be devoted to paying for school staff, maintainence, supplies and new construction. Until such a % is determined, the quality of this debate appears quite low.
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