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Moving out of the way

Geraldine Haldner
Chase McArther, 3, and Quaid Garton, 4, go fishing with Co-Director of the Children's Garden Kari Corbin.
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Educating children from 2 to 5 years old with nature as a learning tool, the idyllic yet central location on a 25-acre hillside in the shadow of Qwest’s microwave tower has been ideal.Soon, however, and for at least a year, the tranquility will be gone for pupils of the newly formed Children’s Garden of Learning.Middle Creek, Vail’s largest affordable-housing development to date, is nearing final approval, and according to Denver-based developer Mike Coughland of Coughland & Company, the project could be under construction by early June for a period of 12 to 15 months. If all goes according to plan, the school and its 120 children will be moving into a new, $1 million, 4,500-square-foot child-care center by Christmas of 2004.While a new school is on the horizon, school officials have to find a temporary home. After all, cranes and trenches aren’t the kind of natural environment the school’s teachers want to which they want to expose their young charges.Ideal situation not possibleAngela Mueller, development coordinator for the newly formed Children’s Garden of Learning – incorporating ABC and The Learning Tree – doesn’t miss a beat when asked what the ideal situation for the transition would look like.”We’d be moving from the old school into the new school,” she says.That, however, won’t be possible, says Coughland, given that the current school sits “smack-dab in the middle” of the construction site.”We have the children’s safety at heart. (But) there really is no way to insure that on the site,” he says of the construction schedule for the 142 affordable apartments, a covered garage and the child-care center.Where to go for now?Mueller says a temporary site has to offer certain comforts while the school is on the move. And a week ago, a hesitant Vail Town Council gave the go-ahead for a committee to explore 14 potential, temporary sites for the pre-school. Mueller says the committee surveyed the sites for everything from traffic and safety concerns and access to utility lines.”Ultimately, we are looking for at least 4,000 square feet, two pre-school rooms, two toddler rooms, an office, a kitchen and bathroom facilities,” she says.Compared to other sites – including Stephen’s Park and the highest bench of Donovan Park – the preferred site, she says, is the 3.6-acre Hud Wirth site, north of Wendy’s in West Vail.”It’s actually flat enough to go in and be paved; it’s got room for an exterior playground; and it is close to utilities,” she says.The site, however, which would consist of one or two modular units, would reside in the middle of a residential neighborhood and be highly visible on the hillside. And to receive a conditional use permit for operating a private educational institution on the site, school officials will have to go through the town’s approval process with the Design Review Board and the Planning and Zoning Committee.”The DRB want us to be “invisible,’ and I don’t know if we can be invisible,” says Mueller. “If we get approved we’ll bring as many trees with us and try to screen the facility.”Mueller says she hopes the two boards will be more receptive of the idea when the school presents its formal application later this month.Other optionsVail Town Council members say they are concerned about the costs of complying with the town’s design guidelines. Council members Bill Jewitt and Dick Cleveland suggest other alternatives, including another look at Stephen’s Park – and even sites outside of town, such as vacant facilities owned by the school district.Mueller, however, says the school’s directors and parents oppose a move outside of town, and while “it won’t be the end of the world,” staying in Vail is worth the pursuing Hud Wirth site, despite early concerns.”We really truly not do not want to go downvalley,” Mueller says. “There is just something unsettling about leaving town, even temporarily.”Geraldine Haldner can be reached at 949-0555, ext. 602, or at ghaldner@vaildaily.com.


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