Times Editorial: Here we are

Will worries trip up Tuesday's crucial vote?

By Northwest Arkansas Times

Posted: September 13, 2009 at 7:01 a.m.

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FAYETTEVILLE — Now that it's time for voters to make the final decision about the future of Fayetteville High School, there isa healthy debate going on about whether the project is the right one for both the community and its future generations.

Given the years of deliberative work by the Fayetteville School Board, and the numerous invitations to the public to become engaged in the fact-finding and decision-making process, we're convinced that the public is voting on precisely the high school that the community asked for.

Remember the entire discussion about location? Will it be at Deane Solomon Road or on Morningside Drive, or will the existing campus be sold to the University of Arkansas (or any other buyer)? That sparked an incredible amount of public discourse, and the district made it clear that having a buyer for the current campus was critical for any relocation.The University of Arkansas offered (then withdrew) $50 million for the site, and a group of residents devoted to the prospect that keeping FHS where it is organized and lobbied hard to prevent a move. A year before that drama, the Fayetteville City Council voted 6-1 to urge the school board to keep a new high school at the existing location.

And what about the proposed layout of the new school? The master plan came about through a collaborative let's-get-all-our-ideason-the-table-type of brainstorming process that urged public participation. Many people invested themselves in creating an outstanding educational vision.

In May, a nationally known firm hired to facilitate the process brought forward the results - and price tags ranging from $100 million to $124 million. The school board declined to begin whittling away on their vision solely to reach an arbitrary lower financial figure.

Remember the decisions to add ninth grade to the high school and to maintain Fayetteville as a one-high school town? These, too, came as recommendations from in-depth study committees that involved representatives throughout the community. The people involved took seriously their charge of determining the best future for FHS.

Both school board votes boiled down to 4-3 splits, showing the legitimate nature of arguments on both sides. Largely, however, school board members on the losing end of those votes have moved ahead with supportive involvement in reaching Tuesday's vote to make a difference for the future of Fayetteville and its students. They didn't let the smaller issues overcome the dream of improving Fayetteville students' circumstances.

The school board has asked the public to pay for what it has said it wants. Their request is the right one, an opportunity to make a 50-year investment on a 30-year financing plan that should not be determined by current, temporary economic conditions.

What if this proposal is defeated? Fayetteville will still need a new high school. At least a couple of years will likely pass before a new option will be put before voters. Sights will be set lower in an effort to produce a smaller price tag, and several million dollars will be lost to inflation. Likewise, the potential to tap into federal stimulus money to help lower interest costs over the next 30 years will evaporate.

Fayetteville's students could use an end to apathy among all voting-age people who have kids or grandkids in the school system - even among those 20-somethings who don't yet have children but one day will want a great high school for them to attend. They need those who are indifferent or unmotivated to step up for a new high school that will have as much significance for the community as a whole as for the students who gain knowledge there.

Our young people need a community that decides to make a difference by embracing Fayetteville's reputation as a center of knowledge. We urge you to support Tuesday's high school measure.

Undefined, Pages 4 on 09/13/2009

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