Why they will buy land

To the editor: The Delaware Valley School Board has made a commitment to purchase land along the 6/209 corridor. Unlike the Santos property, this land does not have large portions in the flood plain. A phase one archeological study has been completed with negative findings. No further archeological studies are required. Three appraisals were conducted to assess the value of the property prior to agreeing on a price (two on behalf of the district, and one on behalf of the seller). One of the district’s appraisals was discarded because the appraisal was partially based on the transfer of the same property between the owner and the owner’s holding company (hardly a fair assessment of value). The other two appraisals were in close agreement. Thanks to the generosity of the seller, the price that the district will pay for the property is considerably lower than the median value suggested by the good appraisals. Taxpayers United candidates have objected to this purchase as they believe they will take over control of the board after the November election. Their plan is to replace the outdated DVES building with a new building on the current 6/209 campus. The community should know that building a new DVES on the existing campus while continuing to use the old building is likely to cost the taxpayers more than the purchase of new land. Building on the existing campus will require the district to tie in to the Westfall sewage treatment center, which is an enormously expensive proposition. Construction costs will be much higher because of the precautions that must be taken when building on an occupied site. In addition, the current administration building will have to be demolished. This means a new administration building will have to be erected or the district will have to rent space indefinitely. Building on the existing campus also means that the district will lose an entire parking lot, and at least two athletic fields. New athletic fields could be constructed in the flood plain at the river’s edge, but that also adds to the cost of construction, and the new fields may be lost if there is another flood. Bussing students to other playing fields may not be an option, and would, in any case, add to the expense. I am not in favor of cancelling or suspending any of the current sports programs. There is no plan for additional parking. Students would have to be told that they can’t park on campus during the construction period. This will cause serious overcrowding on our buses and increase the district’s transportation costs. The purchase of new land allows us to decompress the overcrowded 6/209 campus, make room for expansion of the middle school and high school if necessary, and avoid moving the administration building. Importantly, it also the less expensive option. John J. Wroblewski President, Delaware Valley School Board