Dacono – The St. Vrain Valley School District has turned its back on Dacono, so the town is now turning its back on the school district, said Mayor Wade Carlson.
The district’s refusal to build an elementary school in the southwest Weld County town of 4,200 has so angered city officials that they are considering starting a charter school for the town’s school-age children.
Or they might bus kids to a school in the neighboring Fort Lupton-Weld County Re8 district. Or they might partner with any nearby charter school so students can have a neighborhood school, Carlson said.
“The St. Vrain District used to have this neighborhood school concept,” said Carlson, a former president of the St. Vrain school board. “But we are wondering why they don’t practice that same principle in Dacono.”
About 350 Dacono students are bused across Colorado 52 to attend Frederick Elementary, Carlson said.
The problem, say St. Vrain officials, is that Dacono’s growth has lagged while the adjacent communities of Frederick and Firestone have expanded and are in need of new schools.
“We do expect to build schools in Dacono, but it’s difficult to build when students aren’t there to fill them,” said St. Vrain planning director Scott Toillion.
Dacono issued five building permits through May of this year while Firestone issued 84 and Frederick 75, Toillion said. “We usually see growth first and then we fund schools,” he said.
The lack of an elementary school has stifled the town’s growth and its chances of getting a school of its own any time soon, said Town Administrator Karen Cumbo.
“If you are a young couple with children and are looking to move into one of our neighborhoods, you are looking for one with a school,” Cumbo said. “This is a serious hindrance to our growth.”
The Fort Lupton district has one public school – Quest Academy – on the southern edge of Dacono. It operates in modular buildings and hopes to open its permanent K-8 site in fall 2008.
In a survey sent to residents last month, the town asks if residents in the northern St. Vrain portion of Dacono would be willing to have their children bused to Quest.
The same survey also asks if the town should establish a charter school on the west side of town.
A quick review of the responses indicates residents aren’t smitten with the idea of sending children to a charter school, Cumbo said.
“But in general people want to see a school here,” she said. “And even though we don’t want to be in the education business, we’ll do what we can to solve this problem.”
Staff writer Monte Whaley can be reached at 720-929-0907 or mwhaley@denverpost.com.
