West Bristol School Committee flummoxed by City Council

Story by reporter Jackie Majerus:
After having their chosen location for a new K-8 school rejected twice by city councilors, members of the West End School Building Committee say they don't know what to do next.
"I'm obviously disappointed," said Don Soucy, a committee member who also serves on the city's finance board. "I don't know where the committee's going to go from here. We're back to square one."
Soucy said he'd been hoping that the committee would have been picking out colors of tile to use in the new school by now, instead of still searching for where to put it.
"I'm not happy about the decision," said committee member Gary Vontell of the council vote last week to reject the former Scalia sand pit on Barlow Street as the prime location for a new, 900-student, K-8 school.
"We'll have to meet again and discuss what our options are," said Chris Wilson, a school board member who serves on the committee. "I'm not really sure where we're going to go with this committee."
Vontell said he thinks city councilors want the committee to select the vacant IGA store and surrounding property at Park and Divinity streets – something Vontell said he could never support.
The site isn't big enough, said Vontell, isn't ready to build on, would cost more and possibly be contaminated. He also said it is "too busy" an area to place a school and would displace families from 36 homes that would naturally feed into the school.
Wilson, who preferred the downtown mall property for the school, said he thinks the Park and Divinity site is unsafe.
Soucy said he didn't think there were enough votes on the committee to support either the Park and Divinity street site or the former Roberts property as a location. He said he doesn't see much support on the committee for the other possible locations.
"The other sites have already been researched, studied, visited and ultimately rejected by not being selected," said Soucy. "I'd have to see an alternative site for me not to give 'em Scalia again."
Vontell said it's possible the committee will do just that.
"If it was entirely up to me, I definitely would" name the Scalia site – for the third time – as the best location for the school, said Vontell.
Soucy said he doesn't know if an alternate site exists, and he's concerned about delaying the project.
"The city could be building two schools at two different times," said Soucy, describing a potential disaster if elementary students have to change schools more than once. "You redistrict children twice in this city, it's a nightmare. It's not a pretty sight. You will have the wrath of these parents on you and they won't forget."
Soucy said he hopes a new site can be approved quickly to avoid a delay.
"We have to run side by side with Greene-Hills," Soucy said.
But Soucy said he doesn't like the idea, put forth by committee Chairman Michael Audette, to give city councilors a list of possible locations and see what they like.
The city ordinance says the committee is to select a location for the council to approve, said Soucy.
Committee members initially had scattered favorites, according to Soucy, who said he was the only one who preferred the Park and Divinity site.
"I thought it could work," said Soucy, from an economic and educational standpoint. "I didn't have a problem with the eminent domain issue."
In fact, said Soucy, he favored the Park and Divinity site because he wanted to keep the new school close to O'Connell School on Park Street and because he thought it would be good for the neighborhood, which he said has been "underserved for decades."
Though committee members all had their favorite locations, they compromised and selected the Scalia site.
"The leaning toward certain property was done in discussion," said Soucy, before a majority of the committee came together to recommend the Scalia site.
"Our job was to find the best site for a school that the board of education says we need," said Soucy.
Soucy said he was surprised that city councilors didn't accept the Scalia site the second time around.
"I thought I was a pretty good vote counter," said Soucy. "I thought there would be four votes for it."
Soucy said city councilors applied different standards to the Scalia site than they did to the Forestville site approved for the other planned K-8 school.
"I was upset because they played by different rules," said Soucy. "Their minds were made up and the deal was sealed."



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