I read with interest the article in the April 15 Redmond Reporter about the concerns of a nearby resident, Greyling Gentry, with the new Rose Hill/Stella Schola Middle school being located in proximity to a gas pipeline.

I think it is obvious what Ms. Gentry’s real concerns are, and as a fellow nearby resident with school age children I would like to voice my support for the school district’s capital improvement plans.

From the Redmond Reporter, I understand that Ms. Gentry raised her now-adult son at her current residence and he attended Rose Hill Junior High.

Was she not previously concerned about her son’s safety (and hers) since being a resident adjacent to school property she and her family have spent many more hours nearby the pipeline than the school children? Granted the pipeline continues to age, but it is subjected to regular maintenance and inspection consistent with its engineered design life. Furthermore, the new school will be situated on the property farther from the pipeline than the current structure.

The new school will be situated on a portion of the property that is currently undeveloped. I empathize with the concerns of adjacent residents, such as Ms. Gentry, whose own properties abut that portion of the schoolyard. However, I can’t imagine that these residents purchased their properties under the impression that section of the schoolyard was to remain undeveloped open space.

I am the father of elementary-aged school children who will attend Rose Hill Junior High or Stella Schola, and live within several hundred yards of the gas pipeline. I am not concerned with the gas pipeline. I am far more concerned about the state of funding for public education in this state.

I would like my children to have the same opportunities in their education in Lake Washington School District that Ms. Gentry’s son had. The school district currently owns the property they are planning to redevelop, and therefore there is no property acquisition cost associated with redeveloping the school there. They can also build the new school as they keep the existing school open thereby limiting the disruption to the students during construction. If not at that location, I can’t imagine that this capital improvement project would be able to move forward.

To reiterate, I completely understand the concerns of private property owners whose land abuts the currently undeveloped section of the school property. However, they should drop the pretense of being concerned about the gas pipeline, and should consider the needs of the broader community.

Tim Stott, Redmond