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Home My WebLink AboutHuron Expositor, 2002-05-08, Page 13n News Trustees distance themselves from closure recommendations By Stow Slater Special to The Huron Expositor Trustees of the Avon Maitland District School Board distanced themselves from controversial school closure recommendations made by an independent, board -commissioned consultant, during a meeting of the minds Tuesday, May 15 between school board officials and Huron and Perth County municipal politicians. "I, too, was stunned when I saw some of the options that were in the (consultant's) report," said Stratford trustee Meg Westley, referring to a recently -released report from London-based company Urban Analysis Group. "They were suggesting closing brand new facilities that are full of students and keeping open old schools that are falling apart and only three-quarters full." Westley's admission came after Huron `East Mayor Lin Steffler called on the board to denounce the recommendations portion of the Urban Analysis Group report, before moving forward in what's called a "Student Accommodation Review." The next phase of that process is set to begin May 23, with the first meeting of four regional Community Accommodation Study Committees (CASCs), which will include school council representatives from each of the board's schools, as well as community representatives selected by municipal councils. "I would like to see the 51 options totally gone out of this report," Steffler said. "I think it leaves the perception of, 'Here are your options; pick one.'" + Trustees Randy Wagler (Huron South) and Rod Brown (Stratford) both agreed that recommendations were unnecessary in the consultant's report. But, they saw no need to seek alterations because other portions of the document provide valuable evidence of the board's mounting crisis of declining enrolment and increased unused space.' "Frankly, I would rather not have had the consultant include the recommendations in his report," Brown said. "Because it's making everyone say that's the issue. But the value in this report is in the preface to all of these options -- the demographic studies, the enrolment projections." Director of Education Lorne Rachlis added that the CASCs will have the opportunity to consider many factors which lay outside the Urban Analysis Group's mandate, including transportation issues and the age of school buildings. "What (the consultants) did was consider every student a peg and every student space a hole. And they figured out the best way to put every peg into a hole, at the smallest cost to the board," Rachlis said. "But there's a lot more to it than that." The person who is coordinating the accommodation review process, education superintendent Bill Gerth, however, cautioned that it's very likely recommendations for school closure will eventually have to be made. Gerth's recent staff report about the effects of declining enrolment was included as information for the meeting, and early discussion centred around the degree to which recent changes to the board's school closure policy will protect it from legal action similar to the successful 2000 challenge of a board decision to close Seaforth District High School. The municipal representative from St. Marys, a.town which was hit hard by the Urban Analysis Group's closure recommendations, said it's common knowledge the board is seeking to close schools. And, St. Marys councillor Kerry Campbell even praised the release of the entire consultant's report, saying it Vehicles damaged in Vanastra Compact discs were stolen and damage was done to two vehicles parked in their driveways on Victoria Blvd. in Vanastra on May 15, says Huron' OPP. The blue 1993 Buick Roadmaster and 1991 Chev Blazer had damage done to their steering columns by someone attempting to start them. One had a quantity of change and a first aid kit stolen from it. Anyone with any related information is asked to call Crimestoppers or the Huron OPP. Video camera stolen A $1,500 Panasonic video camera was stolen from, the bottom floor of an abandoned building on Crescent Ave. in Vanastra where volunteers were fixing up an apartment . The camera, which had been left sitting on the floor, was taken sometime between noon and 5 p.m. on May 12. Anyone with any related information is asked to call Crimestoppers or the Huron OPP. IiHurari ...Advisor Need Insurance? I can help. 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He wondered why St. Marys and area schools are included in a CASC along with schools in Zurich and Hensall, even though the consultant's report - and all logical scenarios - would see St. Marys secondary school students bussed to Stratford. He suggested the CASCs might be unwieldy, since their voting membership could include half a dozen municipal representatives and approximately 15 school council members. At one point, he praised Wagler for participating in 1999 as community-based chair of an earlier version of the CASCs, before prodding the new trustee into admitting he's now on the other side of the fence and that the consultant's report "is not good or bad. It's simply information." And he suggested the CASCs should be directly involved in the decision-making process until the very end, instead of under the current accommodation review policy, which asks them only to deliver a report to the board by Sept. 30, 2001. "I know full well, from what went on at Downie (Central Public School), that it's going to create a lot of heartburn," Campbell said, referring to the board's 1999 reversal of a decision to study the St. Marys -area elementary school for potential closure. "And if this committee is going to be strictly lip service, I don't want to be involved with it." "In this short two hours, we, as municipal representatives, have slid into this ditch of saying. 'yes, there will be closures.'" Campbell stressed. "And I'm saying there should not he closures. And we need a full investigation." Following the meeting. Gerth explained that the first CASC meeting will he Wednesday, May 23 at Central Huron Secondary School in Clinton, for the Central West study area. May 24, the Stratford group will meet, followed by meetings May 28 in the North study area and May 29 in the South. 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