I am writing to express my support for the Inlet View Elementary School replacement. The school is almost 65 years old. Its accumulated list of repairs continually drain Anchorage School District resources and is increasingly unsafe and unhealthy for the schoolchildren.
The building does not have a fire suppression system or current safety features, such as a line of sight from the principal’s office to the front door. It also doesn’t meet ASD’s program requirements. One room serves as the gymnasium, the lunchroom and the multipurpose room. The plumbing is failing. A couple of weeks ago the toilets overflowed, with sewage pooling outside one of the main doors. The ASD has estimated that it is more cost-efficient to build a new school rather than to continually repair and upgrade the old one.
My biggest worry is the suggestion that we delay the project. Our children deserve a quality learning environment and a safe place to be educated. If we postpone investing in our schools, we miss the chance to invest in our community. Capital dollars could go elsewhere, and we would gain nothing and lose the time and money already invested in trying to get this school built.
Concerned community members are now involved in the design process and there have been a number of open meetings since September with dozens of residents in attendance. I think the Building Design Committee and the district have done a good job responding to and accommodating some of the concerns expressed, including building height, drainage, traffic and parking issues.
The new school building will benefit the whole Inlet View community and be a marked improvement for the school children, who should be our primary concern.
— Patricia O’Gorman
Inlet View resident, former staff member and parent
Anchorage
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