THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, August 25, 1995 TAG: 9508230147
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 02 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: Ida Kay's Portsmouth
SOURCE: Ida Kay Jordan
LENGTH: Medium: 82 lines
A $38 million commitment to build a high school the city can't afford and doesn't need could cut short Portsmouth's other school facilities for the rest of this century and beyond.
Cautioned by Mayor Gloria Webb on Monday night that money would not be forthcoming for other buildings in the foreseeable future, Superintendent Richard Trumble replied, ``Sometimes it's not more money'' that makes a difference.
That was an unusual and refreshing answer for a professional educator. Most of the time, we are told more money is the answer for better schools.
Let's hope Trumble is speaking the truth.
The immediate construction of the new I.C. Norcom High School this winter will leave the school system short about $17 million needed for major repairs at other buildings.
Generally, half the city's total capital improvements budget each year - now capped at about $8 million - goes to the schools. According to the mayor, for the next seven years, most of that $4 million will be used to pay Norcom construction debts.
Because the schools will have precious little capital improvement money for all the other schools, much of what is done will have to be financed out of the operating budget for at least the next six or seven years. And the schools already are strapped for money - so much so that they have eliminated administrative positions or, in some cases, combined them.
If there is any school maintenance, it will be minimal.
The new austerity puts the onus on school administrators to report minor problems immediately and insist on quick repairs before they become major problems. It also calls for a new regimen of discipline that will punish students for acts that damage or deface school property. In addition, administrators must be sure those who clean the buildings do a thorough job each day.
Just because a building is old doesn't mean it has to be drab or dirty. Nor should students be left with the impression that an old building does not deserve care and respect.
There was a time when buildings were designed and constructed to last as long as anyone could imagine. Now we'll be lucky to get 40 years service out of a $40 million building.
In fact, Churchland High School, opened in 1992 at a cost of $22 million, already has problems - most notably poor air quality. But we've also had reports of leaks and other disruptions that should not happen in a new building.
Chances are that the existing I.C. Norcom High building is a better structure than would be built today. Fabricated of masonry and steel, it is a beautiful building on the outside and well designed on the inside.
If Portsmouth were as visionary as Norfolk, we would have spent $5 million to $10 million - far less than almost $40 million - to refurbish that building and add facilities to enhance its campus.
Norfolk redid Maury High School and made it a beautiful building. It is working on others. Meanwhile, Portsmouth razed the original Wilson High to make way for the new Norcom and now talks of tearing down the original Norcom building, which is less than 50 years old.
I would hope we could find an advantageous use for the building, which has a fantastic frieze on the front. Whenever I pass there on Turnpike Road, I am struck anew by the beauty of that building - and I cannot imagine that anyone would consider tearing it down.
Not only is it attractive and of good design, it has an excellent auditorium, which certainly is a community asset. Spend a little money on it and make it another place for special events.
If this building is in bad shape, as some Norcom alumni allege, the fault lies with administrators who have not maintained it. That may be because of a general attitude in Portsmouth that we'll just tear down and rebuild.
Portsmouth has destroyed buildings that not only were historic and esthetically pleasing, they also have done away with buildings that could have been recycled, a la Norfolk, far more economically than constructing new ones.
Apparently, it is too late to delay the Norcom construction, which is an elaborate waste for a poor city. But maybe with the shortage of building money facing them for years to come, the city and the schools will change their way of thinking. by CNB