School to face closure

BY CARLY TAWHIAO

A Hillsborough school community is in shock after a decision by the Auckland City Council to take the land it sits on.

Monte Cecilia School will be removed within the next five years to provide open space next to the Pah Homestead in Monte Cecilia
Park.

Supporters from the school community were at the council’s arts, culture and recreation committee on Wednesday, where it took more than two hours to decide the school’s fate.

The school’s board of trustees chairman Duncan McGill, says the council’s "indecent haste" to make a decision without properly consulting affected parties was "totally inappropriate".

He says the school, which has about 220 students, received a positive response from almost 90 percent of neighbouring properties that could be potentially affected by a repositioning of the school within the grounds.

"The clear message from those most affected was that the school stays where it is," he says.

"We’re obviously appalled that they haven’t allowed a proper process to be completed. They’re cutting the process short and we’ll continue to be opposed to whatever they want to do."

Marcellin College board of trustees chairwoman Daryl Ruebe-
Donaldson says she’s also concerned at the lack of consultation.

"The whole thing’s been pre-judged.

"I’m disgusted. This has been rushed through because of the supercity."

But councillor Toni Miller said the school community should take a positive approach to the decision.

"I do not see it as the death of Monte Cecilia, but as new life for the school."

The Catholic Diocese, which owns the land the school sits on, was represented by its property committee chairman Geoff Ricketts and Warwick Wright.

Mr Wright said the Diocese had felt like the meat in the sandwich between the school and the council since 1998, when the council first designated the site as open space.

"I understand the school’s motivation and respect their initiatives, however the Diocese didn’t initiate this matter. We’ve been living with this for 12 years."

The Diocese and the council made a deal that the designation would be restored for educational purposes on the condition that the council could have the option to buy the land in the future.

Mr Ricketts says because of that the Diocese had not invested any capital into the school and that if the school stayed the ongoing conflict would continue.

City Vision councillors Glenda Fryer and Cathy Casey are backing the school and vow to get the decision overturned.

"The council has high-handedly made a decision to close a well-loved historic primary school. They have every right to feel gutted that Auckland City Council has effectively closed their school and will leave parents, children and staff in limbo."

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