Delegate Nancy Guthrie, 30th District

The Kanawha County School Board ought to be commended for two things. First, for voting to restore the library funds and second for moving ahead with plans to build new West side schools. Both are badly needed.

The 3-2 decision on restoring the library funds means we avoided another costly lawsuit that would have been paid for with the tax money you devote to education. Staying out of court is always a good thing when it can be helped.

The decision also gives lawmakers an opportunity to revisit legislation passed to see if there is any other option available to plug the library funding gap. We may not be able to solve the problem in the exact manner the Kanawha County School Board wishes. However, we may be able to find an alternative and permanent solution that was not thought of during the last regular legislative session.

At least the Board was kind enough to give the legislature more time to grapple with this very complex and perplexing issue. I just wish they had expressed their opposition to the solution we handed them a bit sooner than they did and in a different way than they did.

Also encouraging, at the same board meeting a decision was made to resubmit plans for new schools on the West side. The residents are eager that students be given the same brand, spanking new accommodations other children receive. There is no escaping the fact that the stock of many Kanawha County elementary and middle schools is in bad shape – from Mary Ingles, to Marmet, Cedar Grove to those in Kanawha City.

The only way to attract people to our communities is to have communities that are well appointed and attractive to live in. That means modern school facilities surrounded by good housing stock, and an active and modern main street. Like most folks on the West side, I’ll be keeping my eye on the proposal when it is submitted to the School Building Authority.

We’re all in this together and together we can build a great future beginning today. What other suggestions do you have to make the West side of Charleston the place you’d like to live?