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Superintendent: Further delays will threaten school timetable

Jane Reuter

SILVERTHORNE – Any further delay on the school district’s pending deal with Silverthorne might push the elementary school opening back by another year, Summit Schools Superintendent Wes Smith said.

Wednesday night, the Silverthorne Town Council voted to continue consideration of conveying six acres of town-owned land to the district by two weeks. That land is slated for construction of a new Silverthorne elementary school. The two weeks doesn’t make or break plans for the fall 2004 opening of the new building, but any more delays will, Smith said.

“Four weeks would seriously call that into question,” he said. “Six weeks, it’s over.”



The council wanted the extra two weeks to work out some kinks in the proposal, including access to private property through the school site and safety concerns, most of those on Hamilton Creek Road.

Smith said Thursday he believes those issues can be resolved and the land conveyance approved at the March 26 council meeting.



Another reason to move forward soon, Smith said, is that “this is the best bid market for public buildings in anyone’s memory. It will save us money to get started now.”

The district plans to build a $12 million elementary school, one officials say will be state-of the-art and built to last 100 years.

Smith met with several people who live in the neighboring Hamilton Creek and South Forty neighborhoods Thursday. Many of them want to see more parking than is proposed to prevent cars from parking along Hamilton Creek Road and blocking the path of emergency vehicles to their homes. Smith said the district is taking those concerns seriously and will offer some solutions.

Jane Reuter can be reached at (970) 668-3998, ext. 229, or by e-mail at jreuter@summitdaily.com.


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