Neighbors wary of empty schools

Talk of closing neighborhood schools stirs many emotions, especially among families with children attending the schools.

But perhaps those most affected by a closure in the long run are those who live the closest - the neighbors of the school.

Colorado Springs School District 11 is considering closing two elementary schools at the end of this school year. Longfellow Elementary is on the list because its declining enrollment means fewer resources and programs for students. Pike Elementary has been targeted because its small size makes it less economical to run.

If their elementary programs are shut down, the school buildings will be considered for other programs.

The school board will discuss the proposal Wednesday.

The Gazette visited with neighbors of Pike and Longfellow schools to see what they think about the proposal. The reactions varied, but one thing was clear in both neighborhoods: Nobody wants the buildings boarded up.

Longfellow Elementary School, 3302 Alpine Place

Todd Cummins lives less than a block from Longfellow Elementary School, where he went to school years ago.

"It doesn't affect me," he said of a proposal to close the school.

Longfellow has roughly 200 students, less than 50 percent of the building's capacity.

A few houses from Cummins, Maysie Carter doesn't want the school to close. She and her husband built their Snyder Avenue house in 1961, and their children went to Longfellow.

These days, she watches neighborhood children and their parents walk to and from school.

"Seeing those little kids every morning thrills me," she said.

She's also thinking about what closure could mean if she puts her house on the market. Being near a school was important when they built the house and it's often a selling point, she said.

The school is one of the reasons Karleen Cotton moved into her home on Chelton Road. She also has three grandchildren who attend the school.

"Young people are buying into this neighborhood," she said, pointing to homes where families have moved.

Above all, Cotton wants assurance the building doesn't remain empty. Nothing is worse than an empty building, she said.

"I know things change, but of course I'm very sad about it," said Yvonne Farquhar, one of Cotton's neighbors on Chelton Road.

Wearing Wasson attire from her children's days there, Farquhar would like to see Longfellow remain part of the community.

"I like the idea of community, how the school brings the community together," she said.

The school has done a good job of bringing in programs that benefit families such as Head Start and English as a Second Language classes, said Mark Johnson, senior pastor at St. Paul's United Methodist Church, which sits across the street from Longfellow.

"The building is full and it's absolutely buzzing," he said.

Dave Abbott, a 30-year Collier Avenue resident, thinks more like Cummins.

Though his backyard sits next to the school, "I'm always gone during the day," he said.

His children went to Longfellow, but they've grown up, leaving little connection between Abbott and the school.

Pike Elementary School, 2510 N. Chestnut St.

Some Pike neighbors like a proposal to close the elementary school and move an alternative high school in; others want the school to remain as it is.

D-11's plan calls for using Pike, the smallest school in the district, for The Bijou School. That would eliminate the need for costly repairs at The Bijou School.

An alternative school?

"That'd be great," said Jeremy Boling, who lives across the street from Pike.

He has young children, but he wouldn't mind if they went to a school farther away. He likes the concept of alternative schools, where students can learn at their own pace.

Benny Rodriguez, who previously worked in an alternative school in a neighboring district, also likes the idea of offering something different for students.

Richard Hency, who has lived on Pike's west side for three years, isn't so excited about the proposal.

Neither are some of the neighbors with children, who like the convenience and safety of having their elementary school next door.

A soccer player, Hency likes having the school fields nearby for a pickup game.

Occasionally, students walk through his yard on their way to or from school, "but they don't do anything," he said.

He's a little leery of older students and worries about vandalism and pranks.

Parent Clyde Medina worries about the traffic, something other neighbors also mentioned. Having an elementary school nearby helps keep the neighborhood quiet and safe, said parent Alison King. She'd like Pike to remain an elementary school, and if it can't, she wants options other than an alternative school.

The park next to the school already attracts "not the greatest crowd," she said.

David Walter and his father, who live on Harrison Street, don't have students at the school, but they feel it's an important part of the neighborhood and should remain an elementary school.

Neighbors don't want to see the building left empty.

"I don't like that because generally there's vandalism," said Carol Harper, a member of St. Luke and St. Aidan Anglican Church, which sits at Chestnut and Van Buren streets.

CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0394 or shari.griffin@gazette.com

CLOSURE MEETINGS

Several meetings will be held to talk about the possible closure and re-use of Pike and Longfellow elementary schools in Colorado Springs School District 11.

A public hearing will be at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday during the D-11 board's regular meeting, which begins at 6:30 p.m. The board will not vote on the proposal Wednesday.

The meeting will be held at Tesla Educational Opportunity Center, 2560 International Circle.
There also will be two community meetings, including:

- 5 p.m. on Tuesday at Longfellow Elementary School, 3302 Alpine Place.

- 6 p.m. on April 28 at Pike Elementary School, 2510 N. Chestnut St.

If the board approves the proposal, Pike and Longfellow would close at the end of the school year.

Pike students would attend Jackson, Howbert or Bristol elementary schools, while students from The Bijou School would move into Pike's building.

The Bijou School, 730 N. Walnut St., is an alternative high school.

Students from Longfellow would attend Audubon Elementary School or Penrose Elementary School in the fall of 2008.

Options for the Longfellow building include: Colorado Springs Children's Chorale and the Colorado Springs Youth Symphony, the District 11 Adult Education Program or Globe Charter School.