There must be a way to accommodate LEAP in the new, spacious school… Craig Donaldson
On Thu, Sep 28, 2023 at 7:03 PM Peter Buchthal <pbucht...@gmail.com> wrote: > The school is too big by any standard. We have 550 students with a > declining school population. The architect and school administration at > the time told us the building was designed for 650 students. More > recently, the school architects publicly told fellow architects that the > school was designed for 700 students. 9 grades (k-8) each have 4 separate > classrooms. Only 2 of the 7 grades have enough students for 4 > simultaneous classrooms. Applying the state education sizing guidelines > for a new school, our 165,000 square feet should support over 1000 > students. > > It would be helpful to our discussion if people can agree on certain > facts. > > What exactly do people like about Plans A, B or C? I like none of them > as I believe the premise of intergenerational mingling as a goal won't be > accomplished with the limited available hours for senior programming at > Hartwell because of the parking, traffic and safety concerns. The new > community center will have senior programming by design only from 9 to 2:30 > on M, Tu, Th, Fr and 9 to 12 on Wed. > > The CCBC presents parking as ample with 50 spots nearby without telling > the community that the current users of Hartwell may already be using many > if not most of the 50 nearby spots. So, we may only have 5 to 10 open > spots at any given time or maybe even fewer if there are events/meetings > going on at the main Hartwell building's multi purpose room, training room > or School business office. > > I am afraid that the CCBC is sticking with a Community Center based in > Hartwell for the wrong reasons. The town has an obligation to its seniors. > I just don't want to build a core town building in a location that comes > with so many restrictions/limitations. > > Peter Buchthal > 71 Weston Rd > > On Wed, Sep 27, 2023 at 10:58 AM John Mendelson <johntmendel...@gmail.com> > wrote: > >> You write as if everyone agrees the school has too much space. I, for >> one, don't. >> >> In my view, if there are lessons to be learned from the school building >> project, it is wise to examine the reasons why the town voted down the >> project in 2012, thereby rejecting $20.9 million in state funding. Hubris, >> perhaps well-intentioned but overly wrought disagreements about site and >> design, concerns about cost? Likely, all of the above. >> >> To my ear, this dialogue sounds very similar, and I cannot help but >> believe that if we kick this down the road, costs are only going to >> increase and the impact of the project diminished. >> >> I trust the work the CCBC has done and will very likely support their >> recommendation. >> >> John >> >> On Wed, Sep 27, 2023 at 7:22 AM Peter Buchthal <pbucht...@gmail.com> >> wrote: >> >>> >>> People of course are allowed to have their own opinions, but I don't >>> believe this building project is about accepting our responsibility for >>> taking care of our elders. As I have mentioned before, my father lived to >>> 97 and was a big user of his local Council on Aging. You apparently >>> believe that if one does not support the CCBC's decisions, you don't >>> support our Council on Aging and its mission. This is far from the truth. >>> >>> Many on Lincoln Talk and others in town simply question the Council on >>> Aging Hartwell generous building space requirements. Residents simply do >>> not want to build a building that is bigger than our needs like we did with >>> the school. There is also a healthy debate on whether it makes sense to >>> build a COA/Community Center on the Hartwell Campus without sufficient >>> parking and limited hours to protect the pre-school Magic Gardens and >>> school age (5+) dropoff/Pickup from automobile running child parking lot >>> mishaps. I am also not aware of any community center anywhere that >>> intentionally colocates a senior center and daycare using a small shared >>> parking lot. >>> >>> Many on Lincoln Talk and the town would hate to see the town build a >>> huge building that is underutilized and repeats the lack of parking at >>> Bemis Hall. >>> >>> As a small community with limited resources and the highest per capita >>> debt in the commonwealth, we need to look at large projects with many eyes >>> and many voices. It is a shame that up to now, the CCBC really hasn't >>> listened to the public's concerns. >>> >>> In an effort to lower the cost and save between 3 and 4 million, I have >>> previously asked why Leap can't be relocated into the school where it >>> belongs. Almost all other school districts have extended day offerings >>> within the school as the hours of a school and after school program >>> dovetail perfectly. Maybe we should ask our new Superintendent if he could >>> house Leap within the school? >>> >>> Does anyone know where Leap is going to run while the Hartwell Project >>> is under construction? >>> >>> Peter Buchthal >>> 71 Weston Rd >>> >>> On Tue, Sep 26, 2023 at 6:03 PM john gregg via Lincoln < >>> lincoln@lincolntalk.org> wrote: >>> >>>> I am so surprised that a community that encourages acceptance and >>>> tolerance would further not doing the right thing like providing a place >>>> for kids, adults and elders should be able to congregate. >>>> >>>> It is about space, about money, about having to be held accountable for >>>> past neglect like providing a school for children. A place where the kids >>>> would be provided safe care at LEAP for parents who work. A place where >>>> adults could allow care for the ones who actually took care of them if they >>>> move back home. >>>> >>>> This is the same discussion when deciding about a new school, a bunch >>>> of intellectuals debating why things should not be provided to others like >>>> was provided to them. >>>> >>>> Best Regards, >>>> John Gregg >>>> -- >>>> The LincolnTalk mailing list. >>>> To post, send mail to Lincoln@lincolntalk.org. >>>> Browse the archives at >>>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/. >>>> Change your subscription settings at >>>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. >>>> >>>> -- >>> The LincolnTalk mailing list. >>> To post, send mail to Lincoln@lincolntalk.org. >>> Browse the archives at >>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/. >>> Change your subscription settings at >>> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. >>> >>> -- > The LincolnTalk mailing list. > To post, send mail to Lincoln@lincolntalk.org. > Browse the archives at https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/ > . > Change your subscription settings at > https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. > >
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