Thanks, Dave. I have reached out to Rabita Rajkarnikar, but haven't heard back yet. We are organizing a Meet and Greet, along with interview, for everyone in District 2.
Not a WL resident, so I can't weigh in on what should move in to the old school location. BUT, I predict that a rumor will start that it will be either a Cheddar's or a gas station. Bless us, and here's to labor!
Brian. Of course you can weigh in. You're linked to the school through politics and taxes.
There are people who don't even live in the district that work at West Lafayette School Corporation. And they weigh in all the time. Sometimes even directing.
But you're right. Rumor on Robinson Street is that it will be a combination fast casual version of Cheddar's that fits into an e-bike and electric car fast charging station. Wild.
What is a Cheddars and also what is neighborhood opinion about "Salisbury Market" at corner of Salisbury and Robinson? Are bright store lights kept on 24 hours a day?
Tearing down all of Happy Hollow is not necessarily a good idea. Some parts of the building are newer and in better shape. (Gym, Library, Front Office)
I can see that point but I'd sure like to see the school district sell the remaining structure to the city, with the proceeds used to reduce the school district's substantial debt load.
I view the recent tennis court joint project as a backdoor way for the city to subsidize WLCSC.
The WLCSC admin building and (bus) parking lot will presumably be left standing.
I don't know who owns the pool but a guessing it is the city. It would seem reasonable for the city to add the remaining part of the contiguous building to Happy Hollow Park as a recreation or community center.
It doesn't make much sense to repeat the Burtsfield plan of leaving only the gym standing for many years. A shrinking school district needs to reduce its physical plant and the attendant carrying costs.
You make some good points and may be privy to information I do not have.
1. does WL school district have a substantial debt load?
2. Why do you think city's tennis court project is backdoor way for city to subsidize WLCSC?
3. I believe City of WL owns the pool.
4. So who would own and operate the reduced Happy Hollow School building as a recreation or community center? The City already has the John R.Dennis Wellness Center and some limited space in Margerum City Hall for some art classes. And the Bean (conference room) seems underutlized as well as a few smaller rooms on the first floor.
5. The school board was using one set of data predicting increase in school-age population--hence that was why Burtsfield got the gym. But then there was a drop of elementary students from Purdue Married Housing and Purdue started hauling the remaining ones to Klondike in the Tippecanoe County School System. WLCSC was left holding the bag--a decrepit Burtsfield, (with a new gym), and a closed Morton School.
I am paraphrasing, but at the Aug 26, 2024 work session on GO bonds (link below, 1:07), Superintendent Shawn Greiner noted that the WL community used WLCSC tennis courts during off-hours (I surmise that the city did not help build or pay to maintain the old courts). He then said that the tennis courts were a way to support and thank the community for providing referendum funds. In an exchange with Board member Rachel Witt, who appeared to imply that relatively few students use the courts, he challenged that and said "I don't apologize for the tennis player ... I think we owe it to our community to support them." To me, he seemed pretty emphatic that he wanted these courts rebuilt for the kids.
He worked with Mayor Easter and others to secure a WL contribution to the project. The WL Redevelopment Comission paid about 40% of the $2 million cost of revovating WLCSC tennis courts and formalized access policies:
I personally think that is all great. WL is not big enough to duplicate a lot of recreation facilities that could be shared between WL and WLCSC. I have to think that, given the evident determination of the Superintendent to have tennis courts available for students, it was going to get done. So it was generous of the city, and supportive of the Superintendent's priorities, to kick in a good chunk of the money required, above and beyond the millions it already provides through the referendum. That is a subsidy, albeit a popular one.
(It has always confused me that WL and WLCSC are so distinct. Seems like their boundaries should be coterminous, at minimum. If WLCSC could expand to WL boundaries, it would add a bunch of larger homes that include kids. I suspect WLCSC would then have less school-age population decline and trouble deciding what to do about transfer students. I would really like to know how many of those kids live in Arbor Chase or the little streets east of Soldiers Home Road.)
[3] Thanks, I thought so. I am hard-pressed to think of a similar-sized city with as many amenities: the ice rink, caretaker's cottage, Louis Sullivan building, among many others, I hope we can keep paying for these luxuries, so [4] I am reluctant to propose that WL add another.
The WLCSC administration and Board should admit that there is no remaining educational need for the Happy Hollow School. Then the plan is simply, divest. It does not actually matter if parts of the building are okay if the whole thing is surplus to educational requirements (even if we were not in a shrinking school district facing financial shortfalls).
If WL then buys or condemns the property (would you need to do the latter to prevent a developer from putting in a 15-story box with an obnoxious name like Parkview Pointe?) the City Council gets to answer your question about community uses in the context of its rich inventory of amenities. That seems like the right body to make the decision about community uses, because even if the WLCSC Board were the greatest deliberative body (it ain't), it is charged with a much narrower mission.
It is not just WL acquiring new space. When the Wabash Valley Education people vacated their building next to the Little League fields, WLCSC gobbled it up without much public discussion. Again, in a shrinking district.
Well, yes, West Lafayette Parks and Recreation does have many offerings for a variety of age-groups and relevant interests. Parks: Happy Hollow, Tapawingo, Cason School Park off of Cumberland, Caretakes Cottage, basketball courts near Wood St. (??) Celery Bog (a regional jewel!!) and the West Lafayette Public Library. Plus nearly thirty miles of hiking, biking, strolling trails. But there is one large gap: Senior Center for persons NOT LIVING in University Place Westminster, or Friendship House. It is true that the Wabash Area Lifetime Learning Association (over 200 active learners) used to be located in Morton Community Center. We had lectures, large open forums for politcal candidates, films all held either in the former Morton School classrooms or the Large-Purpose (read-Gym). WALLA now functions out of St. Andrew United Methodist Church north on Salisbury on the way to William Henry Harrison.
It will take some effort to find relatively unbiased information sources, but I raised these issues and will try.
WLCSC has bond obligations somewhere north of $100 million. I do not think the principal matters as much in thinking about whether this is a "lot," since interest rates were low when $83 million was added in the 2017-2020 period to build things like WLIS. Debt servicing is a better measure of what the distrct can afford. The principal matters, and I think this is not controversial, because the big bond obligations in the last decade limit the amount of new debt that can be taken on for a couple decades.
This shows debt servicing expenditures increasing from about $6 million per year today to about $7 million in 2038. (For comparison, the referendum revenue is about $7 million.) That is only about a 1% annual increase, well below inflation, so it will be cheaper in real terms going forward as we pay with inflation-diluted dollars. But today it is about 1/7th total revenues:
My sense is that everyone fears revenues will decline for numerous reasons, many reported extensively in BiL, but nobody knows how much. Whatever happens, that debt servicing gets paid first.
I think reasonable people can disagree about whether this is a lot of debt. I realize that the corporation can do sophisticated things with debt and has managed it well since CFO Cronk took over. My point is pretty simple, that proceeds from the sale of some of the Happy Hollow School site could be used in lieu of new debt for investments in current priority projects. Removing the building from its books would also reduce current expenditures for e.g., a new boiler, that to me anyway seem well-removed from the core mission of educating children.
You are providing lots of useful leads. I have some other questions for you. Certain large public entities like Purdue University, Westminster Village, University Place, Friendship House, various religious institutions ordinarily do not pay some of the local & regional taxes the rest of individuals and private businesses pay. (I understand that Purdue Research Foundation is subject to some taxes but not the University itself.)
I also believe (but do not know for sure) that when State Farm Insurance Company vacated its building at 2550 Northwestern and Purdue took it over to become Purdue Global--that that property went off the tax rolls. Is that so?
In addition, I understand (from discussions with a former WL City councilor that Westminster Village used to "pay in lieu of taxes" for some city services--police, fire and safety runs,etc. The councilor referred to those as PILOT--"pay in lieu of taxes" That source then added that when University Place got into the community that its lawyers advised University Place NOT to participate in PILOT. Subsequently, the source added that Westminster then decided to follow suit.
Finally, somewhat related. Is it true that recent state legislation granted large apartment complexes somewhat lower tax rates than they had formerly been paying?
Darling. Post your actual given name. Otherwise, it's hard to take you seriously. Out yourself. I like much of your thinking, but your credibility is fading because of your fake name.
Along with Zach’s answer re: Cheddars - it also became a tiresome “joke” answer whenever a question was asked in one of the local FB discussion groups. E.g. “What’s moving into the vacant lot at xxx address” or “where can I get my car detailed”. Etc etc. It more or less finally played itself out when most people figured out that it wasn’t creative or clever.
The comment here was correct, though. I’m betting good money that at least one survey response will be the Ch word.
It's kind of an inside joke. Cheddars is s chain restaurant. There's one on South St. It often comes up when people on social media ask "Does anyone know what they are building on the corner of X and X?"
Cheddars is a chain-restaurant that caused quite the stir when it came to Lafayette several years ago. Them moving into this area is a joke...at least as far as I know. Similar to the obsession with having a Trader Joe's.
I wish the survey included more analysis of the building. Perhaps that is in some documentation? Do you know if the viability of keeping certain portions of the building has been made available to the public?
I am fine. And you? Thanks for Cheddars explanation. I assumed it was a spurious suggestion.
There must be some documentation about the over-all condition of Happy Hollow. The Wabash Area Lifetime Learning Association (WALLA) had a temporary office in one of the classrooms while the migrating WL City Hall was also operating out of Happy Hollow. It seemed to me that the library, gymnasium, central office and classrooms on the west side of the building were ok.(and newer) The original building was built around 1960.
I do not recall any public documentation about the condition--but that would be the West Lafayette Community Schools. So that is the first place I would look for more detailed status of Happy Hollow.
Wonderful. I am doing well, too. Yes. Brian started the thread and I fed into it. As Jenn B stated, Cheddars has been used when making jokes about developments in Greater Lafayette since the Trader Joe's joke became stale in West Lafayette.
Yes. I would think that there is some documentation. I'll call the school on Tuesday. I tried to find something on the website, but when I search Happy Hollow there isn't much in the way of studies: https://www.wl.k12.in.us/search?q=happy+hollow
What I keep hearing in the community is that the price tags for various rehabs, restorations, demolitions, etc. is not easily available.
They could sell Happy Hollow School to the city and let them turn it into a community center replacement for Morton. The school of the community left when Morton closed down.
Also, I cannot express how tacky it is for the chosen District 2 candidate to be so nontransparent about their goals. This is the definition of a neoliberal candidate
"Tippecanoe County Commissioner Tom Murtaugh said there were no new concerns about a LEAP pipeline-like development. But she said there was “just no real reason to not have (the moratorium) in place.”" There should be a permanent moratorium. A law to protect our water, and all the water across the state, from depredation by short-sighted businesses.
That Happy Hollow Survey is a 🚂 train wreck 💥 in clarity. I bet it cost a lot of consultancy money to create and administer.
Here are the questions for everyone to contemplate over the Labor Day holiday:
- Check all roles which apply to you.
- How could the Happy Hollow site be best utilized to serve the current and future educational needs of students within the West Lafayette Community School Corporation?
- What kinds of activities or programs would you like to see happening at Happy Hollow? Please consider outdoor spaces (e.g. playground), too.
- In reimagining Happy Hollow, what factors affecting the surrounding neighborhood should be considered?
- Would you pay for certain school-related programs or services at Happy Hollow? If so, what types?
- OPTIONAL: What additional comments or feedback would you like to share about the use of Happy Hollow?
Lafayette Citizens Band concert Labor Day, September 1, at the Columbian Park Amphitheater 7:00 pm. Pre-concert features the Star City Quintet and they begin at 6:15 pm. Concert is FREE!
Assembling "stakeholder focus groups" frames the question to avoid the answer "knock it down already!" The Happy Hollow School should have been a rubble pile soon after the students left, 6 or 7 years ago. No telling how much money has been wasted since then, as that is the kind of objective question our school board is unable to answer.
Knocking it down would also have prevented Rocky's takeover by a charter school scenario, which seems much less farfetched today, in an era where vouchers can be used to send your kid to any private brainwashing operation you like. This would insure WL kids have access to a quality secular public education for a few more years.
Agreed. Tear it down already! Although expensive, it will save money in the long run at a time when public schools are feeling the squeeze by the legislature.
Thanks, Dave. I have reached out to Rabita Rajkarnikar, but haven't heard back yet. We are organizing a Meet and Greet, along with interview, for everyone in District 2.
If anyone would like to submit questions, you can do so here: https://newchauncey.org/2025/08/rabita-rajkarnikar-interview-district-2-city-council-appointment/
Happy Labor Day Weekend everyone!
Not a WL resident, so I can't weigh in on what should move in to the old school location. BUT, I predict that a rumor will start that it will be either a Cheddar's or a gas station. Bless us, and here's to labor!
Brian. Of course you can weigh in. You're linked to the school through politics and taxes.
There are people who don't even live in the district that work at West Lafayette School Corporation. And they weigh in all the time. Sometimes even directing.
But you're right. Rumor on Robinson Street is that it will be a combination fast casual version of Cheddar's that fits into an e-bike and electric car fast charging station. Wild.
Cheers to your labors.
What is a Cheddars and also what is neighborhood opinion about "Salisbury Market" at corner of Salisbury and Robinson? Are bright store lights kept on 24 hours a day?
Tearing down all of Happy Hollow is not necessarily a good idea. Some parts of the building are newer and in better shape. (Gym, Library, Front Office)
I can see that point but I'd sure like to see the school district sell the remaining structure to the city, with the proceeds used to reduce the school district's substantial debt load.
I view the recent tennis court joint project as a backdoor way for the city to subsidize WLCSC.
The WLCSC admin building and (bus) parking lot will presumably be left standing.
I don't know who owns the pool but a guessing it is the city. It would seem reasonable for the city to add the remaining part of the contiguous building to Happy Hollow Park as a recreation or community center.
It doesn't make much sense to repeat the Burtsfield plan of leaving only the gym standing for many years. A shrinking school district needs to reduce its physical plant and the attendant carrying costs.
You make some good points and may be privy to information I do not have.
1. does WL school district have a substantial debt load?
2. Why do you think city's tennis court project is backdoor way for city to subsidize WLCSC?
3. I believe City of WL owns the pool.
4. So who would own and operate the reduced Happy Hollow School building as a recreation or community center? The City already has the John R.Dennis Wellness Center and some limited space in Margerum City Hall for some art classes. And the Bean (conference room) seems underutlized as well as a few smaller rooms on the first floor.
5. The school board was using one set of data predicting increase in school-age population--hence that was why Burtsfield got the gym. But then there was a drop of elementary students from Purdue Married Housing and Purdue started hauling the remaining ones to Klondike in the Tippecanoe County School System. WLCSC was left holding the bag--a decrepit Burtsfield, (with a new gym), and a closed Morton School.
point 2:
I am paraphrasing, but at the Aug 26, 2024 work session on GO bonds (link below, 1:07), Superintendent Shawn Greiner noted that the WL community used WLCSC tennis courts during off-hours (I surmise that the city did not help build or pay to maintain the old courts). He then said that the tennis courts were a way to support and thank the community for providing referendum funds. In an exchange with Board member Rachel Witt, who appeared to imply that relatively few students use the courts, he challenged that and said "I don't apologize for the tennis player ... I think we owe it to our community to support them." To me, he seemed pretty emphatic that he wanted these courts rebuilt for the kids.
https://www.youtube.com/live/OWPFJMYqoqM?si=i8MQ6UbP2ZrkAhLH
He worked with Mayor Easter and others to secure a WL contribution to the project. The WL Redevelopment Comission paid about 40% of the $2 million cost of revovating WLCSC tennis courts and formalized access policies:
https://www.wl.k12.in.us/document-library/school-board-information/board-meeting-documents/2024/2024-11-11-regular-board-meeting/3304-tennis-court-mou/file
I personally think that is all great. WL is not big enough to duplicate a lot of recreation facilities that could be shared between WL and WLCSC. I have to think that, given the evident determination of the Superintendent to have tennis courts available for students, it was going to get done. So it was generous of the city, and supportive of the Superintendent's priorities, to kick in a good chunk of the money required, above and beyond the millions it already provides through the referendum. That is a subsidy, albeit a popular one.
(It has always confused me that WL and WLCSC are so distinct. Seems like their boundaries should be coterminous, at minimum. If WLCSC could expand to WL boundaries, it would add a bunch of larger homes that include kids. I suspect WLCSC would then have less school-age population decline and trouble deciding what to do about transfer students. I would really like to know how many of those kids live in Arbor Chase or the little streets east of Soldiers Home Road.)
points 3 and 4:
[3] Thanks, I thought so. I am hard-pressed to think of a similar-sized city with as many amenities: the ice rink, caretaker's cottage, Louis Sullivan building, among many others, I hope we can keep paying for these luxuries, so [4] I am reluctant to propose that WL add another.
The WLCSC administration and Board should admit that there is no remaining educational need for the Happy Hollow School. Then the plan is simply, divest. It does not actually matter if parts of the building are okay if the whole thing is surplus to educational requirements (even if we were not in a shrinking school district facing financial shortfalls).
If WL then buys or condemns the property (would you need to do the latter to prevent a developer from putting in a 15-story box with an obnoxious name like Parkview Pointe?) the City Council gets to answer your question about community uses in the context of its rich inventory of amenities. That seems like the right body to make the decision about community uses, because even if the WLCSC Board were the greatest deliberative body (it ain't), it is charged with a much narrower mission.
It is not just WL acquiring new space. When the Wabash Valley Education people vacated their building next to the Little League fields, WLCSC gobbled it up without much public discussion. Again, in a shrinking district.
Well, yes, West Lafayette Parks and Recreation does have many offerings for a variety of age-groups and relevant interests. Parks: Happy Hollow, Tapawingo, Cason School Park off of Cumberland, Caretakes Cottage, basketball courts near Wood St. (??) Celery Bog (a regional jewel!!) and the West Lafayette Public Library. Plus nearly thirty miles of hiking, biking, strolling trails. But there is one large gap: Senior Center for persons NOT LIVING in University Place Westminster, or Friendship House. It is true that the Wabash Area Lifetime Learning Association (over 200 active learners) used to be located in Morton Community Center. We had lectures, large open forums for politcal candidates, films all held either in the former Morton School classrooms or the Large-Purpose (read-Gym). WALLA now functions out of St. Andrew United Methodist Church north on Salisbury on the way to William Henry Harrison.
It will take some effort to find relatively unbiased information sources, but I raised these issues and will try.
WLCSC has bond obligations somewhere north of $100 million. I do not think the principal matters as much in thinking about whether this is a "lot," since interest rates were low when $83 million was added in the 2017-2020 period to build things like WLIS. Debt servicing is a better measure of what the distrct can afford. The principal matters, and I think this is not controversial, because the big bond obligations in the last decade limit the amount of new debt that can be taken on for a couple decades.
https://www.wl.k12.in.us/document-library/school-board-information/board-meeting-documents/2024/2024-08-26-work-session/3007-illustrative-financing-presentation-baker-tilly/file
This shows debt servicing expenditures increasing from about $6 million per year today to about $7 million in 2038. (For comparison, the referendum revenue is about $7 million.) That is only about a 1% annual increase, well below inflation, so it will be cheaper in real terms going forward as we pay with inflation-diluted dollars. But today it is about 1/7th total revenues:
https://www.wl.k12.in.us/document-library/school-board-information/board-meeting-documents/2025-4/2025-01-13-annual-board-of-finance-meeting/3408-fiscal-indicators-through-2023-2024/file
My sense is that everyone fears revenues will decline for numerous reasons, many reported extensively in BiL, but nobody knows how much. Whatever happens, that debt servicing gets paid first.
I think reasonable people can disagree about whether this is a lot of debt. I realize that the corporation can do sophisticated things with debt and has managed it well since CFO Cronk took over. My point is pretty simple, that proceeds from the sale of some of the Happy Hollow School site could be used in lieu of new debt for investments in current priority projects. Removing the building from its books would also reduce current expenditures for e.g., a new boiler, that to me anyway seem well-removed from the core mission of educating children.
now on to point 2...
You are providing lots of useful leads. I have some other questions for you. Certain large public entities like Purdue University, Westminster Village, University Place, Friendship House, various religious institutions ordinarily do not pay some of the local & regional taxes the rest of individuals and private businesses pay. (I understand that Purdue Research Foundation is subject to some taxes but not the University itself.)
I also believe (but do not know for sure) that when State Farm Insurance Company vacated its building at 2550 Northwestern and Purdue took it over to become Purdue Global--that that property went off the tax rolls. Is that so?
In addition, I understand (from discussions with a former WL City councilor that Westminster Village used to "pay in lieu of taxes" for some city services--police, fire and safety runs,etc. The councilor referred to those as PILOT--"pay in lieu of taxes" That source then added that when University Place got into the community that its lawyers advised University Place NOT to participate in PILOT. Subsequently, the source added that Westminster then decided to follow suit.
Finally, somewhat related. Is it true that recent state legislation granted large apartment complexes somewhat lower tax rates than they had formerly been paying?
Darling. Post your actual given name. Otherwise, it's hard to take you seriously. Out yourself. I like much of your thinking, but your credibility is fading because of your fake name.
Heavens, no!
Along with Zach’s answer re: Cheddars - it also became a tiresome “joke” answer whenever a question was asked in one of the local FB discussion groups. E.g. “What’s moving into the vacant lot at xxx address” or “where can I get my car detailed”. Etc etc. It more or less finally played itself out when most people figured out that it wasn’t creative or clever.
The comment here was correct, though. I’m betting good money that at least one survey response will be the Ch word.
another way to waste time and not advance the discussion. thanks for further clarification.
Exactly. I’ve really appreciated the quality of discussion in BIL. Whether I agree or disagree, it usually makes well-thought-out points.
It's kind of an inside joke. Cheddars is s chain restaurant. There's one on South St. It often comes up when people on social media ask "Does anyone know what they are building on the corner of X and X?"
Hello Joseph. How are you today?
Cheddars is a chain-restaurant that caused quite the stir when it came to Lafayette several years ago. Them moving into this area is a joke...at least as far as I know. Similar to the obsession with having a Trader Joe's.
I wish the survey included more analysis of the building. Perhaps that is in some documentation? Do you know if the viability of keeping certain portions of the building has been made available to the public?
I am fine. And you? Thanks for Cheddars explanation. I assumed it was a spurious suggestion.
There must be some documentation about the over-all condition of Happy Hollow. The Wabash Area Lifetime Learning Association (WALLA) had a temporary office in one of the classrooms while the migrating WL City Hall was also operating out of Happy Hollow. It seemed to me that the library, gymnasium, central office and classrooms on the west side of the building were ok.(and newer) The original building was built around 1960.
I do not recall any public documentation about the condition--but that would be the West Lafayette Community Schools. So that is the first place I would look for more detailed status of Happy Hollow.
Wonderful. I am doing well, too. Yes. Brian started the thread and I fed into it. As Jenn B stated, Cheddars has been used when making jokes about developments in Greater Lafayette since the Trader Joe's joke became stale in West Lafayette.
Yes. I would think that there is some documentation. I'll call the school on Tuesday. I tried to find something on the website, but when I search Happy Hollow there isn't much in the way of studies: https://www.wl.k12.in.us/search?q=happy+hollow
What I keep hearing in the community is that the price tags for various rehabs, restorations, demolitions, etc. is not easily available.
They could sell Happy Hollow School to the city and let them turn it into a community center replacement for Morton. The school of the community left when Morton closed down.
Also, I cannot express how tacky it is for the chosen District 2 candidate to be so nontransparent about their goals. This is the definition of a neoliberal candidate
"Tippecanoe County Commissioner Tom Murtaugh said there were no new concerns about a LEAP pipeline-like development. But she said there was “just no real reason to not have (the moratorium) in place.”" There should be a permanent moratorium. A law to protect our water, and all the water across the state, from depredation by short-sighted businesses.
Watch these: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ALeNj7cp_s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-lLJlhWDMc
That Happy Hollow Survey is a 🚂 train wreck 💥 in clarity. I bet it cost a lot of consultancy money to create and administer.
Here are the questions for everyone to contemplate over the Labor Day holiday:
- Check all roles which apply to you.
- How could the Happy Hollow site be best utilized to serve the current and future educational needs of students within the West Lafayette Community School Corporation?
- What kinds of activities or programs would you like to see happening at Happy Hollow? Please consider outdoor spaces (e.g. playground), too.
- In reimagining Happy Hollow, what factors affecting the surrounding neighborhood should be considered?
- Would you pay for certain school-related programs or services at Happy Hollow? If so, what types?
- OPTIONAL: What additional comments or feedback would you like to share about the use of Happy Hollow?
The entire school should have been renovated in to the new city building.
Lafayette Citizens Band concert Labor Day, September 1, at the Columbian Park Amphitheater 7:00 pm. Pre-concert features the Star City Quintet and they begin at 6:15 pm. Concert is FREE!
Assembling "stakeholder focus groups" frames the question to avoid the answer "knock it down already!" The Happy Hollow School should have been a rubble pile soon after the students left, 6 or 7 years ago. No telling how much money has been wasted since then, as that is the kind of objective question our school board is unable to answer.
Knocking it down would also have prevented Rocky's takeover by a charter school scenario, which seems much less farfetched today, in an era where vouchers can be used to send your kid to any private brainwashing operation you like. This would insure WL kids have access to a quality secular public education for a few more years.
Focus on this: Tear it down!!
Agreed. Tear it down already! Although expensive, it will save money in the long run at a time when public schools are feeling the squeeze by the legislature.
Happy Hollow Park West (with a pool)?
WL Sledding Hill (with pool)
Ha! It is a very magical sledding hill. So many ways to use the wide open field there.
And imagine if the splinter giving gazebo was rebuilt.
Oh, the world we could live in.