D150 -- Site '"Cost' Analysis - Apples & Oranges

Apples & Oranges and perhaps other fruit come to mind when we toss the salad for D150's site cost analysis --- Pondering the Potential at PJStar's website.

http://www.pjstar.com/news/ssection/district150/glenoak.shtml

Sites - Please note only the current site is being compared to the 'recommended' size of 15 acres.

1 - District 150 Central Office (Von Steuben) - 12 acres
2 - Adjacent to Glen Oak Primary School - 17 acres (Current site is approx. 3 acres)
3 - Adjacent to Glen Oak Park - 10 acres plus access to the park
4 - Adjacent to Morton Square Park - 5 acres plus access to the park
5 - Adjacent to Constitution Gardens - 1.7 acres plus access to park land

Estimated cost of acquisition (calculated per acre) / demolition costs

1 - Zero / Unknown.

2 - $3.5 - $5.5 million / $590,000 and $935,000 - approximately 14 acres to be acquired [$250,000 to $392,857 per acre].

3 - $1.6 million / $232,000 --- however, no mention that taxpayers are only purchasing 5 acres [$320,000 per acre] and the other 5 acres is to be potentially 'shared' with the Peoria Park District from Glen Oak Park.

4 - $1.2 million / $132,000 - approximately 5 acres [$240,000 per acre].

5 - $400,000 / $40,000 - approximately 1.7 acres [$235,294 per acre].

(All figures are estimates and actual costs would be subject to change)

Positives & Negatives - Range of reasons ---

Student Concentration ---- THIS IS THE QUESTION TO BE ASKED and ANSWERED!

1 - Site is outside the attendance area for Glen Oak and White students.

2 - No comment.

3 - No comment.

4 - Site is removed from the heaviest student concentration.

5 - Site is removed from the heaviest student concentration.


And your vote is .... , Site 2 (Current Glen Oak School) or Site 3 (Proposed Glen Oak Park Site) for the heaviest student concentration?

Let's just use a T-chart and compare all the APPLES and ORANGES for each site and about the whole process --- and the analysis reveals:

Taxpayers do not ....

(1) like the process which has been utilized by D150 and the PPD to 'announce' this done deal;

(2) like the idea of the PPD entering into any type of agreement with D150 to use any part of Glen Oak Park as the new site for the Glen Oak School;

(3) like the idea that D150 will use Health Life Safety Bonds, or State School Construction Grant Money (if it ever gets approved) or Public Building Funds if Senate Bill 2477 (SB2477) becomes law or any other combination of funding sources to fund schools for which the taxpayer has no say in the site selection et al;

(4) want a Birth to 8 school; ........

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Taxpayers do want ...

(1) open government for the planning and collaboration of a healthy and vibrant Peoria --- schools, neighborhoods, et al;

(2) D150 to utilize the current Glen Oak Site;

(3) to have a clear accepted model for the future with a well designed plan of implementation;
http://www.civic-strategies.com/library/change.pdf (A Good, Simple Theory for Change)

(4) to decide by referendum the funding of any new school construction; ......

Other additions to the T-chart?