Wanted: Advocates for Western Duluth

Two weeks apart in July the DNT ran to banner headlines about property sales falling through. The second fall through in mid-month was the Rockridge Elememtary site. I only groused about how I was the last to learn of this development.

I’ve got other things to grouse about now and its taken me a couple hours to build up a head of steam. Let’s call my concern political equity.

Two of our Board members stepping down from the Board are Denfeld grads and loyal alumni and in fact much more. Yet as we have read the anguished letters from Denfeld students, parents and faculty and even one huffing and puffing editorial in support of them by the Trib Denfeld keeps getting squat. (That’s old timer speak for “nada”) What I’ve heard from the folks I expected to be Denfeld advocates is that Denfeld has not been shortchanged in terms of staffing. They utterly discount the declining student enrollment at Denfeld which is now nearing half that of East High School, 900 – 1600. That just beggars belief.

So today I finally read a note about a sliver of property that our District has had its eyes on for a couple years since poor old Westminster Prebyterian got washed away in the flood of 2012. Its not big and we didn’t have big plans for it but the City snapped it up before we could get a word in edgewise…….although City Planning knew we wanted it. They paid what we planned to pay for it, $30,000.

Then they offered it to Community Action Duluth. Despite our property managements best efforts to improve upon the situation without leaning on the City staff it looks like City Planning was prepared to give us (Denfeld) the short end of the stick. Now that’s not the treatment that the Rockridge Neighbors got when the Developer who wanted to buy Rockridge threw in the towel.

These east Duluth neighbors who are close to militant about their property values and keeping the atmosphere of the neighborhood at the status quo set up a website – regularly updated – a couple years ago. They showed up in force at a City Council meeting recently and the Developer who had dropped his proposed number of units down three or four times from well over 100 to around 65 hung it up as the City kept putting more and more restrictions on his plans at the behest of a city councilor and the neighbors.

Out west where retired and blue color and free-and-reduced-lunch families are preoccupied with getting by there is no well organized constituency to lobby for their interests. That was apparent to me as I read the bewildered communication from our facilities Management director explaining how the City Planning Dept. was pushing plans out west next to Denfeld.

I just sent the City Councilors and our Board members the following email to tip west Duluth’s political equity a little closer to level.

Harry Welty
10:47 AM (2 hours ago)

to City Council, School Board, Kerry, William, william

Councilors,

Although the Duluth Schools are not your turf I have no doubt you have followed the difficulties the school district has faced trying to provide equity across the district. Furthermore, you must be aware of the terrible imbalances in school enrollment between our eastern and western schools. I am concerned because, at a time when we need to get our act together to help Denfeld High School, the City and Community Action Duluth seem determined to place a wonderful, but problematical, project on Denfeld’s doorstep regardless of the impact.

Our property management team has been waiting for several years to make an offer on a small parcel of land adjacent to Denfeld which would give us a chance to enhance access to the school. To our surprise the City of Duluth offered the same small amount for this acreage and then pointed Community Action Duluth to it when other land options were readily available elsewhere.

Our staff suggested a win/win proposal which would have allowed our students and Community Action’s clientele to work jointly in a greenhouse program. We were told that this would not be possible because there was no way to assure that Community Action’s clientele could be trusted to mix with our students.

I do not believe that it is anyone’s interest to proceed with this project under these constraints.

I understand that Community Action is concerned that a potential donor might withdraw a donation should this site not prove acceptable. I find this hard to believe. Surely the prospective donor is not interested in a particular location for [a] greenhouse [was (typo)] so long as it is situated in an appropriate and accessible space.

This project as conceived could drive more students and families away from Duluth Denfeld at a time when we are attempting to bring some parity between our two high schools.

I may bring a resolution to our school board requesting that the City find alternative locations for this project.

Sincerely,

Harry Welty

I sure hope our new school board will have some new board members who give Western Duluth its due.

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