Decision Soon on School Site, Board Members Say

Atlanta school board members Nancy Meister and Reuben McDaniel told the Buckhead Council of Neighborhoods Thursday night that APS is close to making a decision on a site for a new Buckhead high school.

Assuring the group of neighborhood associations that APS remains "committed" to building the new school, Meister said "A decision is right around the corner. Dr. Hall (outgoing school superintendent Beverly Hall) wants shovels in the ground before she leaves in June." Meister represents Buckhead's District 4.

McDaniel, a Buckhead resident who serves the at-large District 8, echoed Meister. "We will have an announcment very, very shortly."

The school board members received no questions about the APS' accreditation probation, instead hearing complaints and concerns about the site selection process. 

BCN Chairman Jim King expressed the group's dissatisfaction that a decision has not been made. "We encourage you to make one quickly," he said, adding that the group would "express our concerns to Superintendent Hall and others. "

McDaniel and Meister said the administration has narrowed the choice to four sites. They said the sites could not be disclosed because of negotiations with land owners. Speculation has centered on the IBM campus on Northside Parkway.

"The process has taken longer than anybody wanted," Meister said.

Asked about a petition by North Atlanta parents in favor of a "centrally located site" instead of the IBM site, which is on the outskirts of Buckhead, Meister said "it's so hard to find 30 acres of land in Buckhead....I don't know where there are 30 acres right around here that's suitable."

The new school would replace North Atlanta High School, which sits on 10 acres, which Meister said is too small for a full high school program. The North Atlanta campus would be used to relieve overcrowding at Sutton Middle School. McDaniel said no decision has been made about whether a new middle school would be established, or a separate academy for sixth grade students.

The small site "doesn't allow North Atlanta to give kids the opportunities they could have at a bigger site," Meister said.

The group also heard a report by Zone 2 Commander Maj. Robert Browning, who said "for the first six weeks of the year, we're doing extremely well," with the number of crimes unusually low.

He cited the zone's directed patrol program for the apprehension of a robbery suspect at the Wal-Mart at 1801 Howell Mill Road this week.

And, he disclosed that a family's 23-year-old son who reported a home invasion on Rilman Road last weekend had been caught trying to pawn silverware reported taken in the burglary. The man said that he'd come home and encountered the burlars, who forced him to tie himself up. Browning said officers had been suspicious of the story from the beginning.

"You can rest easy; there's no real home invasion up there," Browning said.

No charges have been filed, police spokesman Curtis Davenport said Friday morning, saying the case is still under investigation.