Planning for the future is often an emotional experience. Just ask our graduating seniors or the many high school students who will find themselves on college campus tours during spring break. Our efforts as a school district to build for the future are no exception; determining the type of school we should build and where we should build it are issues that people are passionate about.
The fact is, our current schools are at or over capacity. Students are packed into common spaces, traffic around our schools is a growing nuisance and safety issue, and exterior trailers designed to be temporary classrooms have become permanent fixtures. Additionally, we are limited in our ability to adopt new and innovative programming for students because we don’t have the space. These issues affect students, teachers, parents and our community every day. They are problems we cannot solve alone.
We formed an advisory committee in 2018 to bring a variety of people together to devise solutions to benefit our students and serve the greater good. Now, as we inch closer to a solution for current and future students we are keeping the community top of mind. In turn, we hope the community will prioritize Steamboat’s youngest residents in this effort to provide the educational environments our students deserve.
Steamboat has seen a return on its investment in education. A
2017 study by the National Association of Realtors
shows that a good home in a good school district fetches a higher price and holds a better resale value. Our schools often factor into families’ home-buying decisions.
When the district acquired the Whistler property in 1980 and then Steamboat II in 1997, it was done with the future intent to educate and serve children. As we work with our future neighbors, we strongly believe that they will understand our commitment to both mitigating and minimizing the impact of a school and co-create a well-designed facility that improves neighborhood amenities and quality of life, while benefiting the entire community.
There are so many things that divide us nowadays, but often times our children unite us. Whether it’s gathering for Sweet 16 Sailor basketball or replacing books for a community devastated by a wildfire, our schools and children are woven into the fabric of our neighborhoods and our community is stronger for it.