Copyright 2005, 2007, The News-Dispatch, All Rights Reserved.
| November 14, 2005
Deborah Sederberg The News-Dispatch. |
| Groundwater at the school, as it is in much of the town of Pines, has been contaminated with some elements of fly ash, deposited years ago in a nearby landfill. For about a year, the Environmental Protection Agency provided bottled water to the school, something the school corporation does now. It would cost at least $750,000 - perhaps as much as $1 million - to bring city water to Pine Elementary School, Vince Taylor, Michigan City Area Schools business manager, said at a work session of the Elementary Schools Facilities Committee on Tuesday. While discussing the possibility of building a new Pine School, committee members considered the wisdom of building on the same site. Board member Bob Frame is against that idea. “It might have been an excellent site for Pine Township students 75 years ago," he said. “Today, three-quarters of the Pine students come from Michigan City." Frame, whose family has had a farm in Pine Township, suggested what he considers a viable alternative site in Porter County, a few feet south of the point at which LaPorte County Road 400 North comes to a dead end with County Line Road. Buses coming from Michigan City now must turn left from U.S. 20. Frame said. At the County Line Road location, Frame said, buses could cross U.S. 20 on Ohio Street at a traffic signal and take that to 400 North and then to County Line Road. No one knows whether water at the suggested site is contaminated. If the board decides to bring city water to the suggested site, the cost would be about the same as bringing it to the present Pine School, said Taylor said. At Tuesday's meeting, no one knew who owns the land or whether it is for sale. Taylor agreed to investigate. At Mullen Elementary School, Taylor said the site is too small for a larger one-story school. Committee members have discussed the possibility of turning Mullen into an early education center and are now waiting for results of soil borings to determine whether they might be permitted to erect a larger building on the site. Tony Gianesi, director of plant planning, reminded the board of the land behind Michigan City High School and Krueger Middle School, both owned by the corporation. Should it be necessary to build Mullen in a different location, he said the board might want to consider the land it owns. Harding said another possibility is that “sometimes, trades can be made among governmental entities."q Contact reporter Deborah Sederberg at dsederberg@thenewsdispatch.com. |
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Copyright 2005, 2007, The News-Dispatch, All Rights Reserved. |