By Laura Gossman
Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN
WEST CONCORD — Citizens in the Triton School District will get their chance to voice their opinions on the closing of the Triton Middle School building in West Concord.
The Triton School District will hold a public hearing Monday in Triton High School in Dodge Center.
Superintendent Robert Kelly said the school board has not officially voted to close the school, but it has voted to finance a middle school addition to the Dodge Center building, which currently houses both high school and elementary students.
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"We’d like to use the savings from the closure of the old school to help pay for the new addition," Kelly said.
According to the public hearing notice, the current building in West Concord is a "deteriorating energy inefficient building which would require substantial expenditures in order to bring it up to standards necessary for providing educational services."
The school board also believes the current building is larger than necessary.
The notice also says that the addition proposal would take an inadequate and substandard facility off line and would save on operational and utility costs, repairs and maintenance, as well as savings related to the transportation of students, staff and travel time.
Those opposing the closure have asked why the board is holding a public hearing now, when its seems that the school board has already decided to close the building. But a public hearing is required by law before any school can be closed.
Laura Gossman covers news in Olmsted, Dodge, Fillmore and Houston counties. If you have news tips and story ideas, call her at (507) 285-7619.
For more information, go to Postbulletin.com/weblinks.
Triton School District http://www.triton.k12.mn.us
