Laura took notes at the January 23 meeting with Charlie Tygard; we'll post those in the "metro" section shortly. In the meantime, here are some of her first thoughts on the matter. Thanks, Laura!
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Laura Pyper’s thoughts on the 23 Jan 10 meeting, and the rising interest in a Bellevue High:
Thank you Emily, for setting up this blog!
I’ve been wanting to see momentum build in the Bellevue community for a local high school for years, so it was exciting to see so many people out on a Saturday morning on short notice (in most cases, about 14 hours).
I was impressed by the thoughtful and intelligent questions and comments from the meeting attendees. There is a lot of energy out there , and in many cases desperation as our kids get older, to get this project underway.
It seems that the best way to sell the concept of moving the high school will be “location, location, location”.
Location: Best access to students, centrally located.
Location: Home values in Bellevue strengthen, increase tax revenue for county, make realtors and homeowners happy.
Location: Where will this school be? I’m partial to the mall site, but I’m open. (See my 2 ½ year-old proposal on this blog*). I would love to block out a site plan for any site out there that could work.
No one wants to see this idea fizzle or be on extensive hold while we wait for the stars to align (library anyone?); our children are growing up!
Network, tell your friends and neighbors about meetings. At a future time we may need volunteers to bring surveys around to their neighborhoods, and to raise awareness. Be aware that a Bellevue high school would benefit more than simply families with young kids but also grandparents, businesses, property values for everyone, the entire metro school system, Nashville, the future of our country, and the universe!
Perhaps I’m a little passionate about this, but can you see the possibilities?
Imagine. . . .
Wouldn’t it be amazing if our kids could use the bike path on Sawyer Brown to go to school?
*note from Emily: proposal file will be uploaded soon! Come back to check it out, it's exciting! (if only we can convince the folks who, you know, own the property . . . lol)
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First of all, doesn't Foursquare own the Bellevue Mall property, even though they haven't started to develop it yet? Or is th plan to just eminent domain them?
ReplyDeleteSecondly, I think putting a HS there is a HORRIBLE idea. We don't need to create a traffic mess on Hwy 70 like Hillsboro Road has twice a day when Hillsboro HS is in session. Especially when there's another school zone less than a mile away for.
Yes, someone (though, apparently not actually Foursquare, I recently heard?) owns the mall property. They've continued to own it hoping to get the community to support whatever they put on it. A mixed-use-including-highschool might be just the ticket for them.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, NO TRAFFIC. Well, ok, that's a little unrealistic. But it needs to be managed appropriately (planning, technology, adjustments), not just spit out onto whatever street the highschool would be placed on. Especially if it turns out to be that section of 70S, which is only tolerable now b/c it has so little traffic at this time.