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Manchester GOP Supports School Modernization Plan [The Hartford Courant](Hartford Courant (CT) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Oct. 10--MANCHESTER -- The Republican Town Committee has voted to support a proposed long-term revamping of the school system, a spending question voters will face on Nov. 4. The GOP vote at a meeting Wednesday was unanimous, committee Chairman John Deeb said. Mark Tweedie, a member of the town committee and the town board of directors, said he made a motion to support a "yes" vote on the referendum after School Superintendent Matthew Geary made a presentation to the committee. The districtwide modernization plan includes creation of a fifth- and sixth-grade school by combining Bennet Academy with the Cheney Building and "like-new" renovations and additions to Verplanck and Waddell elementary schools so that each school could serve up to 530 students. Robertson and Washington schools eventually would be closed, under the plan. The project will cost about $84.2 million, according to the referendum question. With state reimbursement, local taxpayers would be responsible for about $37 million. Tweedie noted that both he and Republican Cheri Eckbreth, the board of directors minority leader, were on a special panel formed to find long-term fixes for the school system's aging infrastructure. The panel approved a plan meant to place all students in 21st-century learning environments, accommodate growing enrollment, meet state mandates on racial balancing and maximize state reimbursement for construction and renovation. "We believe this is the best plan for the future of the Manchester school system," Tweedie said. "It's not a perfect plan, but it is the plan that meets all the requirements that are upon us." The proposal, which is the first phase of a two-part plan, is not just about the school district's future, but the future of the town, Tweedie said. Property values, healthy neighborhoods, the overall quality of life in Manchester -- all depend on good schools, he said. "The school system is the core of the community," Tweedie said. ___ (c)2014 The Hartford Courant (Hartford, Conn.) Visit The Hartford Courant (Hartford, Conn.) at www.courant.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |