Next Thursday, Aug. 28, at 6 p.m., the Wiscasset School Board will consider what is, without exaggeration, one of the biggest decisions this specific board will ever make, the question of closing one of the town’s three school facilities.
This issue does not come as surprise. It has been floated and discussed for years.
The wisdom of the closing was an article of faith for the Wiscasset Educational Research Panel during their deliberations and a stated campaign goal of the three WERP members who stood for election to the town’s new school board; two of whom were actually elected.
Economically the case for closing a building can be easily made. Unused space costs money. At one time, Wiscasset had a booming school population and needed the space. Now it doesn’t and the long-term demographics of the state indicate it is not going to change anytime soon.
Whatever happens, the town will still have a building to maintain and future decisions to make about that building, all of which essentially boil down to two choices, namely keeping it or selling it, and there are positive arguments to be made for both.
Whatever the board’s action, it is an important decision for the board and a momentous occasion for the town, the full ramifications of which won’t be known for generations.
People who want to weigh in one more time before the vote are encouraged to attend.
