One of the hallmarks of Ridgefield and New England is the Town Meeting.
Its importance will be underscored when Ridgefield residents gather Wednesday, October 9th,at 7:30PM at Scotts Ridge Middle School to discuss and vote on an important educational initiative: the relocation of two Ridgefield Public Schools (“RPS”) programs, the Alternative High School and the 18-21 Transition Program. Anyone interested in voting should bring their driver’s license or ID to validate your residence and be able to vote.
RPS administration and the Board of Education propose a 10-year lease for the 11,000 square foot building at 66 Grove Street, which has been vacant since 2020, to house both programs.
For years, the Alternative High School has been housed in a small building owned by the Ridgefield Housing Authority at Ballard Green. The 18-21 program has operated out of portable classrooms at Veteran’s Park Elementary School.
The need for the new location comes as enrollment in the Transition Program is projected to increase by 10 students at the start of the 2025-2026 school year with additional increases expected in the following years due to a new state law extending the upper age limit to the participant’s 23rd birthday. This program acts as a springboard to post-grad life for developmentally disabled students.
The Alternative High School (“AHS”), which has a current enrollment of about 20 students, is designed for those coming from hospitalizations or having individual education programs created to meet their specific needs that cannot be met at the traditional high school. The goal of the AHS is to ensure every high school student is educated in an environment that allows them to graduate.
Concerns raised about the renovation costs and the potential for increased vehicle traffic in the area can be allayed.
Currently, students enrolled in these two programs are outplaced when their needs cannot be met by RPS, at significant cost to the district, for both education and transportation. A substantial portion of the renovation costs for 66 Grove will be offset by the improvement in RPS capability to meet currently outplaced students’ needs, thereby returning them to their home district. Such a savings is a reasonable expectation given expected case load growth.
There will be less traffic and personnel at the site than in its previous incarnations as a fitness center and a research center for petroleum services company Schlumberger.
The section of town at Grove Street and Old Quarry Road has seen more traffic in recent years, much of it generated by the relatively new Treetops town home condominiums and Ridgefield Crossings senior living center, both of which are near to the proposed facility. The new facility will only generate traffic at its opening in the morning and closing in the afternoon, most of which will be created by small accessible vans and staff vehicles, not school buses. The educational facility at 66 Grove Street will not operate in the evening or on the weekend.
All told, approving the lease will set the right path for students and the community in planning for the future, while upholding our obligation to provide our most vulnerable students with the educational opportunities they require to have a productive life after graduation.
Read Superintendent Susie Da Silva’s news release providing a detailed explanation of the proposal.