Council urges school board to stay in EC
EVANS CITY — Residents of the borough do not want to lose their schools.
As the Seneca Valley School Board nears a decision on the future of the Evans City Elementary and Middle schools, borough officials and residents are hoping to convince the board to keep the schools in town.
Talks about replacing the school have been ongoing for months, with options limited to paying to repair the existing structure or construct a new building. The new structure would be either at the current location in Evans City or on Ehrman Road at the border of Cranberry and Jackson townships.
Borough residents in meetings and in online community forums have expressed displeasure at the situation and a desire to see it resolved without losing the schools to the neighboring townships.
Council President Lee Dyer wrote and submitted a letter to the school board on behalf of borough council. In it Dyer asks them to consider the cultural and economic downside to the borough if it were to lose its schools and encourages them to vote to either repair the existing structure or to rebuild the schools at the current location.
Dyer read the letter at Monday’s council meeting.
“It appears as though the (school board) is close to making a decision regarding the fate of the Evans City School,” the letter reads. “Recent discussions and newspaper articles lead us to believe you are leaning toward building a new school on Ehrman Road in Jackson Township/Cranberry. The Evans City Borough Council respectfully requests that the Board considers the deep impact on the Evans City community as well as our student residents.”
The letter goes on to list ways the school and borough benefit each other and Evans City’s long history of hosting a school in the borough, which began in 1820.
“Our residents have proudly supported those schools both financially, physically and emotionally,” the letter states. “Our school is not only an education center for our students, as well as surrounding communities, it is an economic engine for our borough. In addition to employing many members of our community the visitors to our town often shop at our businesses.”
Those businesses would be negatively impacted by lost revenue, the letter states. Dyer went on to list some benefits the district would realize by keeping the school in the borough.
“The school uses our police department to safeguard our students entering and leaving the building while providing daytime security during operating hours with a ‘roving’ officer in the building and parking lots,” he said. “The students’ safety is also enhanced with having both the police department and fire station located less than three blocks from the school. The school property is also patrolled routinely throughout the summer when students are not present.”
The letter ends with a request that board members consider the impact a move would have on the borough and its students.
“Strong consideration must be given to the vitality of the borough as well as the 150 students who now need to be bused to a new location along with the 1,841 borough residents who have financially, physically and emotionally supported our schools for 198 years,” he said. “Please make the decision to renovate the existing facility or build the new school on the existing property. Both options are financially solvent.”
After Dyer read the letter Monday, those at meeting applauded in support. Mayor Dean Zinkhann encouraged those in the room to attend the next meeting and make their voices heard.
Dyer said members of council also will likely be in attendance Monday.
During Monday’s Seneca Valley School Board meeting, Jim Nickel, board president, asked the board to keep in mind ideas for the project. “I can respect and appreciate the school in Evans City,” Nickel said, adding he wanted to do everything he can “to respect and preserve that legacy.”
