New Woodburn Community School

DEATH ZONE SCHOOL SITE

The horrific calamity of last week’s April 20th traffic fatality and multiple injuries and hospitalizations at the intersection of Route 705 and Stewartstown Road show why siting schools at high traffic, congested, and/or arterial highways is prohibited in West Virginia, and why the Eastwood Mileground intersection site, just up the road at another dangerous intersection, is such a menacing and flagrant violation.

Superintendent Devono’s repugnant primary plan, described recently on WAJR, is to send your children through that fatal intersection every day, even though your children don’t live anywhere near that intersection or any part of Route 705.

The Dominion Post reports:

“Monongalia County Sheriff Al Kisner has firsthand experience…. He said he was once hit from behind while at 705 and Stewartstown road. He was waiting for the traffic light to change. When it did, the car behind him hit his vehicle before he started moving.

Mon Schools in complete negligence is going full throttle in siting a school on the most dangerous highway in the entire region, even though not a single student in the Eastwood catchment lives on or near that highway, that deathway, Route 705.

“433 wrecks, 30 weeks, 8 sites” – first 30 weeks of 2010:

Except for the very few children who live on or just off the Mileground, not a single child who attends Easton or Woodburn Elementary would have to ever risk the traffic dangers and pollution damages of either the Mileground road or Route 705 if not for the horrible arterial intersection Eastwood school site.

But because Mon Schools in all its flagrant disregard for the health and safety and well-being of the schoolchildren of Easton and Woodburn is trying to site the combined Eastwood school at the intersection of Route 705 and the Mileground (US 119), several hundred young children, ages 3 to 11, will be exposed to the dangers and damages of those highways, their intersection, and the air-polluted school site every single school day, at least twice per day…4 times per day if they go out and come back for a field trip…6 times per day if they return after school for a play, a practice, a meeting, or other event. That’s about a quarter million exposures per school year, of young children to terrible Mon-Schools-imposed dangers and damages.

A school sited on the existing Woodburn schoolgrounds would never expose the schoolchildren to Route 705 or to the 705/Mileground intersection. Never. Not even for students attending from the direction of Easton. Read the rest of this entry »

POURING YOUR CHILDREN’S EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES DOWN THE MINES

Parents at Woodburn Elementary and other schools scramble to raise some funds for their children’s futher educational opportunities and meanwhile the Monongalia County Board of Education burns through cash like it was the best fuel available.

Take a look at the $650,000 figure to be spent on grouting beneath Eastwood Elementary at the Mileground site. No one knows if the cost will cap out there. Might go a lot higher. But regardless, now, add $400,000 in additional grouting expense needed to stabilize the geothermal field that will be used to heat the school (reported in the Dominion Post today).

Now the projected mine mitigation cost for Eastwood on the Mileground is over a million dollars, nearly the projected mine mitigation costs of University High which was badly underestimated, since the final cost came in just shy of two million dollars. Is that what Eastwood will cost to mine mitigate? Two million dollars? More than one million is already bad enough. That’s all the candy and cookie fundraisers put together for the past many decades.

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg of bullshit expense at a menacing site. Or, we should say, human shit expense, because as far as is known, the Mileground trailer park dumps its sewage directly into the mines beneath the schoolgrounds and always has.

Question of the day sent in from a concerned citizen: Does grout set up in shit?

Apparently so. Because certain officials’ brains seemed to have been cemented into immobility a long time ago.

Meanwhile, your children’s educational opportunities are lost to the sewage of the mines. Read the rest of this entry »

CRASHES AND CHEMICAL SPILLS IN COMMUTER CORRIDORS AT SCHOOL RELEASE HOURS

The Dominion Post reports today that at 3:26 pm yesterday, when Monongalia County schools were letting out, a wreck forced the closure of the Mileground Road.

A few minutes earlier a truck overturned on I-79 spilling a chemical. That and other kinds of trucks carrying hazardous materials could likely be using the Mileground Road frequently when it is expanded to 4 lanes in a few years, if the trucks aren’t already. And more big trucks will be using the Eastwood 705/119 Mileground intersection if the two new truck and commuter routes are added to that vortex as currently prioritized by the Greater Morgantown MPO: the Falling Run Corridor and the Inner Loop Connector. Then there is the impending opening of the nearby industrial park by the airport. There is also the impending opening of the Mon-Fayette expressway, which originates (or ends) near the area.

And Scheetz has schematically designed a gas station to go in at the armory, right next to the would-be Eastwood school building. Sheetz has even asked Mon Schools to allow its gas station customers to share the school drive. Gas stations are toxic and dangerous every hour of every day of every week. This would be the fourth gas station on the Mileground within a few hundred meters of the Eastwood site. And WVU intends to build a hydrogen bus fueling station a few hundred meters from the school site as well, on the Morgantown end of the Mileground.

You see, that is what happens in major commuter corridors and especially in unstable commercial and industrial areas: major commercial and industrial development, major traffic accidents, chemical spills, and other threatening growth and “incidents.”

And that is why mandates forbid the building of new schools in West Virginia near such hazards. Because it’s not safe. It is especially not safe for hundreds of children 3 to 11 years old massed together at one intersection at the nexus of all these hazards: the Eastwood Mileground site.

Somehow Superintendent Frank Devono and the five members of the Mon Schools board don’t understand that: President Barbara Parsons, Vice President Joe Statler, Mike Kelly, Clarence Harvey, and Nancy Walker. They don’t get the dangers. They don’t respect the mandates. And they thereby are failing to care for the children. They think the Eastwood Mileground site is the best school site available. Here they are:

Is it not long since time that they all volunteered to work HazMat patrol on the Mileground around Eastwood Elementary? Or maybe the school uniform for the students could be a HazMat suit. Hundreds of bright yellow little HazMat suits. HazMat Elementary.

Read the rest of this entry »

CRAZY CIRCLE TO WOODBURN AREA FROM THE EASTWOOD SITE ON THE MILEGROUND

According to Superintendent Frank Devono, on WAJR yesterday, you would have to drive, your children would have to ride, through the catchments of two other elementary schools to return to the Woodburn area, even though the Eastwood Mileground site sits in (barely, if that) the Woodburn catchment and is only a half mile from Woodburn. You would have to drive and your children would have to ride several miles in a big roundabout loop through North Elementary’s catchment. How is that for negligent? Why don’t they just rename the school North II, the more negligent model. That crazy circle home for Woodburn area children was the best the Superintendent could offer on the radio yesterday. Mon Schools has not asked for a traffic light to be put on WV 705, thus, only right turns onto WV 705 is Mon Schools’ operative thinking.

[An official with WV Division of Highways is on record remarking that, in regard to potential school and gas station siting, “it’s safe to say that no one from the District or DT is going to be accepting of the idea to install a signal anywhere near this intersection” which would be needed on WV 705 to allow school traffic to make a left turn to be able to return to Woodburn area. (see DOH correspondence below)]

Of course, nothing is finalized yet, so maybe your children will have to fly to the moon each day, too, before they can return to the Woodburn area. When it comes to Mon Schools and the Eastwood Mileground site, nothing should surprise anyone.

Hey Dave.  We wanted to give you a quick heads up regarding some upcoming issues in Mon Co.  Last week, Mr. Terry Astleford, a real estate developer representing Sheetz stopped in to the District to go over a few sites they are looking at in Mon Co.  One location in particular, at the NE corner of WV 705 and the Mileground (US 119) presents numerous concerns.  In addition to the Sheetz, apparently a new Elementary School is also being considered further back on the same corner.

As you know, getting traffic into and out of Morgantown is a never ending struggle and keeping traffic moving at this intersection is critical.  Ultimately, we would like to have 2 lanes continuous to I-68 and a few different alternatives, I understand, are being considered to accomplish this.  At least one of these involves adding a lane to the Mileground.

I don’t see how we could allow left turns onto either side of this corner without a signal.  And its safe to say that no one from the District or DT is going to be accepting of the idea to install a signal anywhere near this intersection. Perhaps the school would propose to construct an entrance a good distance away from the corner itself on WV 705, but I don’t know.  Mr. Astleford was representing the interests of Sheetz primarily so of course he is concerned with the corner itself.

Anyway, you may already be aware of discussions regarding the school, but as of yet, we haven’t seen anything official at the District.  Since we assume its still very early in the planning stages, we just wanted to let you know of our concerns so you could have them in mind.

Thanks.

Mike

Michael Davis

WV Division of Highways

District Four

(304) 842-1597

David E. Cramer, PE

WV Department of Transportation

Commissioner’s Office of Economic Development

1900 Kanawha Boulevard, East

Building 5, Room 129

Charleston, West Virginia  25305

304.558.9211

304.558.1004 (fax)

David.E.Cramer@wv.gov

FOIA release (below) from WVU showing Sheetz’ early interest in a dual school/gas station drive, at the corner WVU parcel (above). After WV DOH planned to put the 705/119 intersection on that corner WVU parcel, Sheetz shifted its interest and plans to the armory site. However, this still leaves a dual access possible from the intersection: school/gas station access,  ”a combined entrance” (see below). Why would Sheetz not want that direct access from the intersection to an armory gas station? In fact Sheetz would need such access to allow traffic from both sides of the impending divided highway to reach a gas station at the armory site.

See, below, part of our Freedom of Information Act request of the WV Division of Highways.

This FOIA release shows Sheetz’ most recent interest in the armory site bordering the school grounds very close to the would-be school building:

From: ”Cramer, David E” <David.E.Cramer@wv.gov>
To: ”Davis, Michael R” <Michael.R.Davis@wv.gov>
Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2010 08:41:22 -0400
Subject: RE: Another Sheetz Request

FIGURING THE REAL COSTS OF THE SCANDAL & DISASTER THAT WOULD BE EASTWOOD ELEMENTARY ON THE MILEGROUND

_______________________________

COST OF THE FIASCO:

MON SCHOOLS’ ARCHITECT-ESTIMATED PARTIAL COSTS (TABLES 1 & 2 – bottom):  $15,196,594

[Update: On April 15, 2012, the Dominion Post reported that Mon Schools’ architect upped the estimated cost of Eastwood by $2.5 million to $17.6 million, which we had long since anticipated and explained. Add in the approximately $4 million in land acquisition and other costs, and the overall cost of Eastwood surpasses $21,000,000, which again we have long since estimated (see below), and which is a cost far, far higher than has ever been previously admitted or in any way put forth as even a possibility by the officials. And again, for reasons we have long since explained, the total costs could go far, far higher, if they haven’t already.]

TOTAL ESTIMATED COSTS, INCLUDING LAND COSTS: ~$21,000,000 +

_______________________________

TABLES 1 & 2 COSTS DO NOT INCLUDE “OTHER COSTS” (ESTIMATED):

1. PURCHASE OF WVU PARCEL (8.85 ACRES): ~$2,900,000
2. PURCHASE OF THE MOBILE HOME PARK PARCEL (~2.5 ACRES):  ???~$800,000
3. REMEDIATION OF THE MOBILE HOME PARK (SURFACE)  ???~$200,000
4. REMEDIATION OF THE MOBILE HOME PARK (MINE-MITIGATION)  ???~$200,000
5. THE SCHEMATICALLY DESIGNED “FINAL” PART OF THE FULL-SIZED SCHOOL (DETAILED BELOW AS “ALTERNATE SPACES”), WHICH WOULD TAKE THE STUDENT SEATING CAPACITY OF EASTWOOD FROM 450 TO 550 AND THE SQUARE FEET OF THE SCHOOL FROM 66,416 TO 70,973:  ???~$2,000,000
6. OTHER ARCHAEOLOGICAL, GEOPHYSICAL, AND ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENTS (POST FEB. 2):  ???~$200,000
7. MISCELLANEOUS (PRESENT & FUTURE NEGLIGENCE OR LIABILITY LAWSUITS, EXTRA POLLUTION CONTROL MEASURES, EXTRA SAFETY MEASURES, ETC.):  ???~$100,000 TO ~$10,000,000 OR MORE
8. UNKNOWN:  ???

OTHER COSTS, TOTAL:  ~$6,200,000 OR ???

TOTAL COSTS, EASTWOOD MILEGROUND SITE & BUILDING:  ~$21,000,000 + ???

Total costs above are a rough estimate based on limited information. Mon Schools should feel free to add detailed input on these costs estimates, at any time. What a good public service that would be.

[Update: As more data continues to come out, our estimates have proven to be right on target. The Eastwood Elementary project is on track to cost about $21 million. The Board expects to have “full and cleared title” to the entire site by July 15, 2011. Soon to be released construction bids will tell us more.]

The approximate $21 million expense for a new school terribly located raises several giant questions: Read the rest of this entry »

DEVONO THREATENS TO SEND WOODBURN CHILDREN MOST OF THE WAY TO PENNSYLVANIA

Superintendent Frank Devono is going way beyond the bounds. It was on WAJR quite a few months ago that Mon Schools Superintendent Frank Devono first threatened that he could have put the new “Eastwood” Elementary miles outside of Morgantown at the new University High School (UHS) site. He renewed that threat in a meeting with the Dominion Post this past week, reported in today’s article, “Date for levy vote uncertain“:

“We can take the same school [Eastwood] and put it up at University [High, on Baker’s Ridge Road],” he said.

Recall: this (new) UHS site is NOT one of the 19 sites that Mon Schools investigated and considered via their hired architect, who presented on the 19 investigated sites at Mon Schools’ board meetings over a period of months, March-June, 2010 (see map, bottom).

The architect’s final evaluation of sites consisted of three sites: the existing Woodburn schoolgrounds, the area near old UHS/new Mountaineer Middle, and a mystery location (the exact 705/119 intersection location on the Mileground that Mon Schools refused to disclose at the time).

The new UHS site was never considered, to the public’s knowledge, in the architect’s site selection process. Never.

In fact, the UHS site is 2 miles distant from any of the other 19 sites considered. The 19 architect-investigated sites are all within 2.5 miles of one another, at most. But the UHS site is 2 miles from the nearest of the 19 sites, and about 4.5 miles from the existing Woodburn schoolgrounds (see map, second from bottom). The UHS site is Devono’s threatened alternate site.

The superintendent threatens to send Woodburn Elementary students most of the way to Pennsylvania, beyond the bounds of all the other Morgantown area elementary schools:

Pictured above, as blue dots, are the Morgantown Area elementary schools. From left to right along the top line: Mylan Park, Suncrest, North, Easton (black dot on blue), Cheat Lake; from left to right along the bottom line: Skyview, Mountainview, Brookhaven. The center black dot encircled is Woodburn Elementary. The top black dot encircled, most of the way to Pennsylvania, is the new UHS site, which the superintendent threatens as the Eastwood alternate site. This brilliant idea would send the innermost city schoolchildren to the outermost Morgantown area school.

Devono has latched upon the UHS site as being the one alternate to the Eastwood Mileground site ever since the beginning of the lawsuit against Devono and the Mileground site. Now he has repeatedly raised this site, never considered publicly by the architect, as the one alternate to Eastwood.

“We can take the same school [Eastwood] and put it up at University [High, on Bakers Ridge Road],” he said. “But then it really loses the community feel.”

One wonders: What sort of “community feel” does the new high school have out there, after being removed from the city? It’s practically in another state. Not to mention that the intended location of the consolidated Eastwood Elementary immediately at a major commuter corridor intersection in a largely commercial district where virtually no one can walk to has exactly zero “community feel” also. (What idiocy. A commuter corridor intersection site for a consolidated elementary school has a sheer idiocy feel. No surprise then that the local communities large and small have actively and vehemently opposed the site.) Devono adds:

“I challenge you to find me a better site than the one we have [on the Mileground].”

Is Superintendent Frank Devono deaf and blind? Or did he sleep through the presentation of the Woodburn school model, made by architects with school design experience? A Woodburn resident demonstrated the model in a school board meeting presentation, which made clear how a school could be built on the Woodburn schoolgrounds.

The existing Woodburn schoolgrounds site was one of the final three sites in the full “Site Selection Evaluation for the SBA Green Elementary School for the Monongalia County Board of Education and the School Building Authority of West Virginia.” Devono’s threatened site did not even make the top 19. It wasn’t considered at all. Why does superintendent Devono continue to speak in such an arbitrary and capricious manner in regard to siting? Maybe we will need another lawsuit to find out.

The broad community consensus all along, which the superintendent and board have never even acknowledged, let alone tried to work to implement, is to build TWO modest-sized schools to replace Easton Elementary and Woodburn Elementary. Mon Schools could do so very efficiently and properly by building one on the existing Woodburn school grounds, and by building another on the UHS site (or some other suitable site), which would well serve the Easton catchment. The silence from Mon Schools on this most appropriate option is deafening, as it has been for many months.

THE GREAT BENEFIT OF A NEW SCHOOL ON THE MILEGROUND

WV Division of Highways’ consultant on the Mileground expansion, ENTRAN, shows what a new school, Eastwood, would do to traffic on the Mileground during the years prior to the Mileground expansion, dropping Mileground outbound traffic speed in the afternoon from an optimistically figured 14 mph to 8 mph:

ENTRAN reports in “Mileground Road Traffic: Final Report,” February 2011 (bold and italics added):

Several analysis scenarios were created for the purpose of evaluating and comparing the Mileground Corridor alternatives. Two critical time periods on a “typical” day were compared – the average weekday morning and afternoon peak periods or “rush hours.” On Mileground Road, these periods typically occur from 7:00 A.M. until about 9:00 A.M. and from around 2:30P.M. until about 6:00 P.M. Although there are other times (noon, for example) when Mileground Road traffic conditions are congested, these morning and afternoon peaks represent a regularly occurring worst case. Traffic counts for the base year models were collected during the summer of 2010, but these counts were multiplied by an adjustment factor derived from historical data to account for traffic conditions when local schools and WVU are in session.

In other words, the ENTRAN report merely notes the common knowledge of the extraordinary multiple extended congested rush hours on the Mileground. Otherwise, the report can only hypothetically account for the actual traffic count because the actual observational study was done when the schools and universities were not remotely in full session. Maybe that’s why the average speed of 14 miles per hour is so optimistically high. It’s not based on actual observation of the most common conditions.

Notice too that the ENTRAN report says nothing about the virtual gridlock in the half mile between the 705/119 intersection and Woodburn, where Charles and Hampton intersect with 119. ENTRAN was not commissioned to study that section of road, because WV DOH has no known plans to do anything about it.

By WV state law, Mon Schools is bound to WV Policy 6200 (202.06), which prohibits new school sites not “located away from” – among other egregious violations in the immediate area – “congestion.”

Aside from the unlawfulness of the situation, including the health and safety damage and threat to children, what kind of idiocy is involved in siting a school that is monstrously entrapped by congestion for 6 hours or more on a regular day? Does Mon Schools’ Superintendent Frank Devono get paid a huge bonus to waste public funds and waste public facilities like that? Beside being an unlawful reckless menace of a site, it’s profoundly stupid. A stupid waste.

A rush hour forced 6:30 a.m. school start time would have children eating school breakfast in the dark and “lunch” during mid-morning. Meanwhile, accessing the school during the school day or after “regular” school hours, for all types of events, or snow delays, and so on, would be prohibitive…or, at the least, a great waste of time, and harmful to health, especially to the health of the children, ages 3 to 11 in this pre-K through 5th grade facility, the would-be Eastwood Elementary.

Eastwood Elementary on the Mileground: signed, sealed, and still trying to be delivered by Mon Schools Board, consisting of President Barbara Parsons, Vice President Joe Statler, Mike Kelly, Clarence Harvey, and Nancy Walker. Remember those names. Don’t ever vote for them again, if you ever did before.

Oh, and, thanks, WVU administration, for ruthlessly profiting off this debacle and calamity in the making. Good thing (one hopes) that you are starting up that program in Public Health. Maybe you can start making restitution there.

Read the rest of this entry »