[Vision2020] if it keeps on rainin', the levy's gonna break

[Donovan Arnold]

OK, let me follow your logic Dan.

We should build a new High School because:

1) We want High School students to have the right to have front door 
parking.


2) We should also build a new high school so we can build track and fields 
for them to exercise because they drive everywhere.

3) These new track and fields will be located just ¼ of a mile away from the 
other fields, track, and football field in the city. This will not promote 
government waste because ¼ mile is too far for most athletics to walk or 
travel.

5) The High School is old and not adequate for education so we should give 
it to the alternative high school students. Kind of like when the White 
Schools got old, we gave them to the Black Students.

6) We should spend 2/3 of our money on the High School instead investing it 
in other schools that have more urgent needs like Russell and the Junior 
High

7) The High School does not have enough parking for 550 students in 2005 but 
it did for 550-700 students in every year from 1962 to 2004.

8) The classrooms are too small for 550 students but were not for 700 or 
more

9) Building a big huge high school for about 1000 students is better than a 
smaller school

10) What the Department of Health and Welfare says about teenage exposure to 
older students regarding drug use, teen pregnancy, smoking, and depression 
and suicide, should be considered a bunch of hogwash because your sister 
says otherwise.

Some of your statements leads me to believe you are not following are 
arguments;

"the area around it does not have the room to accommodate the vehicles used 
by every other student"

How can this be? My class had more students and we had enough parking. Plus, 
the parking lot for the new school will be further away from the front door 
then where they park now, it is on 40 acres.

"everyone should ride the bus"

Everyone will have to ride the bus or drive if you move the High School out 
of the center or town where students can now walk and be dropped off my 
parents and others on the way to work.

"Not only that, there is no place for activities related to P.E. class.  
Okay, so they get bussed out to Mountain View park, but that cuts out the 
time for the teachers to actually teach"

Well, the funny thing is that the student classes that attended the High 
School before them are in better health and they had the same problem. You 
could also just as easily just have the first and last periods of the day be 
PE and extend class time by ten minutes. Have seven periods where half 
attend first period and not seventh, and the other half attend seventh but 
not first. But that solution would save us building a new high school and 
constructing two football fields, two track fields, two baseball fields, and 
two soccer ball fields from being build just 1/4 mile away from each other.

Dan, I am all for building a new high school. But not when other schools 
need it more. And certainly not one that duplicates services while ignoring 
other services. This bond levy is the definition of poor government planning 
and results in waste. We should at least have all the costs of running a 
school in front of us before voting. Would you buy a car without first 
finding out gas mileage and insurance costs? Are you really thinking we 
should just buy it and hope we can afford to keep it?

Take Care,

Donovan J Arnold

>From: "Dan Carscallen" <predator75 at moscow.com>
>To: <vision2020 at moscow.com>
>Subject: [Vision2020] if it keeps on rainin', the levy's gonna break
>Date: Fri, 8 Apr 2005 09:19:38 -0700
>
>So, Donovan (and others) harangues against a new high school because the
>old one can be renovated to accommodate the student population.  Maybe
>the building can, but the area around it does not have the room to
>accommodate the vehicles used by every other student and all the staff.
>Okay, so you'll say "everyone should ride the bus".  Hogwash.  Remember
>when you got your drivers license?  What was the first thing you wanted
>to do was DRIVE, everywhere!  And so do these kids now.  Not only that,
>there is no place for activities related to P.E. class.  Okay, so they
>get bussed out to Mountain View park, but that cuts out the time for the
>teachers to actually teach, let alone do whatever activity is scheduled.
>Now people question the value of Physical Education.  Okay, let's just
>get rid of it and raise a bunch of slugs who we won't have to support
>later on in life because none of them will live past 50 due to their
>sedentary lifestyle that began when they were in high school.  That am
>reel smart!
>
>According to the plan, the current high school will not be "thrown
>away".  It will be used as an interim location for elementary students
>during the renovations to West Park and Russell, and then be the new
>location for the alternative school. Not only that, I guess plans are in
>the works for Latah County to move some offices into the 1991 annex.
>Sounds like a win-win to me.
>
>Now others would complain that the new high school would promote sprawl.
>Maybe, maybe not.  Others will bemoan the loss of beautiful farmland.
>Still others will complain of the large parking lot that will probably
>be included in the new construction.  Personally, while I'm not sure I'm
>in favor of *this* particular plan, I am in favor of having a high
>school with plenty of parking located around it, and having all the
>playfields and facilities RIGHT THERE.  To do this, you need to start
>with room, and most all new high school construction starts with 40
>acres to accommodate this.  As the illustrious Mr. Eisenstein said
>before, this probably isn't the most productive piece of farm ground,
>and the mere fact that it is located within the city's area of impact
>makes it a pain in the butt to farm.  Granted, farming next to a high
>school may not be that much fun either, but most farming activities
>would occur when school is out.  And if it promotes "sprawl" in the form
>of housing in that area, those people should be well aware that farming
>activity is taking place there before they got there.  So, to put it
>bluntly to those who would complain about farming activity when they
>build right next to a field, quityerbitchin'
>
>I'm still not sure of my position in this levy (I am leaning in the
>"for" direction . . . slightly -- not that it's anyone's business), but
>I do believe a new high school is needed.
>
>I agree to a certain extent with Phil Roderick that we *are* overtaxed
>to a certain extent.  I also believe that a lot of it comes from the
>anti-development crowd being against some big employers, thereby causing
>them to locate elsewhere (SEL, anyone?).  I hope Mrs. Richardson-Crouch
>has a little more success in attracting some more employers to increase
>the tax base.  With the layoffs, we can't count on the U of I as an
>employer forever, and we for dang sure can't count on them for taxes.  I
>also hope "Team Huskey/Lund" will look at more than just Christ Church
>for getting stuff that belongs on the tax rolls back into the pool.
>
>Sorry for the manifesto, hope it makes sense.
>
>Dc
>
>
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