Granby Drummer (https://granbydrummer.com/category/voice/op-ed/page/3/)
My name is Kelly Lewis and I am a Granby resident and mother of 3 (ages 3,7 and 9). Although I believe the science behind teenagers needing more sleep, I am completely opposed to the school time changes that are being proposed by The School Start Time Task Force.
I want to thank people throughout the Granby community who have reached out to me and others, and attended public hearings, to share questions about the three projects being presented for voter approval on June 4.
Granby has a severe case of apathy. I say this because voter turnout for the FY19-20 budget referendum was 1,052 out of a potential 7,700 registered voters; 529 voted “yes” and 523 voted “no” with the budget only passing by six votes.
Kearns School has been the focus of various Granby Study Committees assigned by the BOS since receipt of the transference from the Education Department in 2016. A variety of recommendations were made by those respective group members but no subsequent action has occurred.
An unsolicited purchase offer was made on the Evonsion Farm but withdrawn after a public hearing, yet no further marketing efforts were/are currently forthcoming to my knowledge.
We’ve seen only one proposal for using decommissioned Kearns School, an asset owned by the town. Maybe that is because the town has done a poor job of ascertaining Granby residents’ usage preferences.
My focus in prior op-eds has been Granby’s economic fate relevant to the potential of its assets and the risks inherent in fiscal miscalculations.
I have written a number of op-eds on this subject and spoken at BOS meetings during public sessions over the past year or so. I acknowledge the objectives of a diverse public facility as proposed by the soliciting Facility Committee for the lease of Kearns School.
The proposal by the Kearns School Committee, led by Elliot Altomare, is an altruistic objective; however, it must make dollars and cents for the Town of Granby, its citizens and its relative economic health. While a non-binding letter of intent is being drafted, there are several points to be considered.
A democracy can only exist until a majority of voters discover that they can vote themselves largess out of the public treasury… with the result of collapsing as victim to loose fiscal policy.
On Oct. 15, I made another public comment presentation to the Granby BOS to re-address the ongoing concern for the status of the closed Kearns Elementary School.