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PLAINS TWP. — The day after an election that largely left a pro-consolidation majority intact on the Wilkes-Barre Area School Board, Superintendent Brian Costello gave a tour of the high school construction site to freshly reelected board member Shawn Walker, showing off athletic rooms already walled and roofed, beams for the gym roof going into position, and other considerable advancements in the project.
“This is good stuff,” Walker said after being impressed by the size and breadth of the project. Walker was initially critical of consolidation plans when first discussed four years ago, but his support has grown as the high school rises. He was one of three pro-consolidation incumbents on the ballot who won another term on the School Board in Tuesday’s election, which also saw two newcomers — Beth Ann Owens-Harris and Terry Schiowitz — win seats. Both have questioned the consolidation plans.
Costello eagerly discussed the variety of spaces students will have, including “flex rooms” for individual or small group work, a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) section with state-of-the-art equipment, new space for the district’s Creative And Performing Arts Academy currently housed at GAR Memorial High School, and a heritage room in homage to the history of the three schools merging into the new one.
Critics have repeatedly questioned the projected cost savings of consolidation and accused the district of picking a former mining site that, according to tests, has some elevated levels of elements deemed hazardous in the soil. District officials have insisted the site will be safe because the project is meeting or exceeding all requirements of government regulatory agencies.
Tuesday’s election included a slate of anti-consolidation candidates, several of whom promised to stop or at least delay the project while reviewing options. The tour suggested options are narrowing. Site work is progressing quickly, with roofs appearing since the October visit, the odds seem to increase that one hoped-for milestone will be met: At least two classroom wings completed by winter so work can continue inside.
