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Not a Good Time

Madison votes Feb. 15 on the School Renewal Project. This adds one new elementary school on Mungertown Road. Jeffrey and Ryerson will be permanently closed, so we will have fewer schools. In 1990, Madison had six schools with 2,934 students. Student numbers increased to 3,837 in 2006, and then declined to 2,478 in 2020.

Things have just reversed, and we are now increasing! New families are moving in. Older, longtime residents are moving out and selling to younger families with children. I believe we will soon be back to 3,000 students. This is not a good time to be closing schools.

With four schools, it will soon be apparent that another new school is needed. Financing a second new school this decade will be difficult. Another significant issue with this plan is concentrating three out of four schools in just one area. In the past, schools have been spread out to reduce traffic and bus travel time. The new Mungertown Road school will be 11 miles from our northern town line. By car 11 miles is quick, but on a school bus with numerous stops it is exceptionally long. Mungertown Road is narrow with limited access for heavy traffic.

Yes, we should definitely build a new modern elementary school to keep our facilities the best in the area. This school should be built on the large, 53-acre Durham Road campus, replacing Ryerson. We must keep our number of schools at five, spread out schools around town, and keep Jeffrey School open. I encourage your readers to vote “No” for this School Renewal Plan. A revised plan must be created that does not leave us with fewer schools, that does not concentrate schools in one location, and that considers the recent new growth in student population.

Charles Lehberger

Madison