City Council Public Hearing Testimony July 16, 2013 I have been trying to understand the plan for

years. When all the fifth graders were in Fuller and downtown kids went to downtown schools, the plan was to abandon OMaley and convert Fuller to our Middle School, because Fuller was in so much better shape than OMaley. That changed during school reorganization and Fuller was kept as an elementary school. Then, despite frantic opposition by Peg Sibley and Gus Foote and many parents including me, a wave of school closings was implemented leaving downtown with 30% of our population and no schools at all. The only school on the closing list we were able to save was Veterans on the Ward 1 border, which was built in 1958. East Gloucester and West Parish are older, built in 1948. Beeman was 1955 and Plum Cove was 1966. Plum Cove is the only one in good condition. Despite being in better shape than many of our older schools, Fuller was closed and the downtown children bused to outlying schools, which were expanded with modular classrooms to handle the numbers. The resulting bus routes are fantastic, for example from Maplewood Ave to Plum Cove in Lanesville. Fuller is said to be rotting away, even the extension where the preschool and school administration and City Facilities people are. I know this not to be true because I have had grandchildren in the preschool for the last three years and was in there every school day this past year dropping my grandson at his classroom. A couple of months ago the city closed the gym in the main Fuller building though which was an aggravation for the preschoolers. Fuller was transferred to the city by the Catholic church in 1970 in excellent condition and its construction was first class. The church does not have to take the low bidder. If it is falling apart, it is our fault. However we have heard this story again and again. Most recently the Forbes school was said to be a wreck and an environmental nightmare. As soon as the city moved out, it turned into residential units. Central Grammar is housing. Eastern Avenue is Para research . If we really give Fuller up as a potential school, the implications are staggering. The schools close to Fuller near the highway are West Parish and Veterans. Both of those schools need to be replaced. Fuller is much closer to downtown than schools where we are shipping downtown children. The logical step is to use Fuller for West Parish and Veterans children and the downtown children who are being bused far from home. Then the old Beeman and East Gloucester schools can be renovated without the pressure of absorbing many children from downtown. Veterans can house the city hall annex which is renting space at Pond Rd. These are suggestions. I am sure there are others. However the present non-plan is just not acceptable. Dr Damon E Cummings , 1063 Washington St.