Edmond parents upset after construction mess - Edmond, OK
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Parents of children who attend John Ross Elementary School are frustrated at the construction obstacle
Waymark Code: WMZW5M
Location: Oklahoma, United States
Date Posted: 01/12/2019
Views: 2
John Ross parents are frustrated at the obstacles they are encountering getting their kids to school. The city and school district have not coordinated well regarding the construction issue and difficulty parents would have accessing the school. Thomas Road is closed from Danforth, where parents would normally be able to travel north to the elementary school. But a new water tower is being constructed by the city, making a big mess of the area. Access to the school from the north (Covell) is now a mess also, with a muddy dirt road impeding travel.
Article text:
EDMOND, Okla. - Metro parents are frustrated after hitting a road block while trying to take their kids to school.
Drop off and pick up has become more like a trip through a maze at John Ross Elementary in Edmond.
The reason is the main road to the school is closed.
The City of Edmond has been working on re-doing Thomas Drive since last summer. They said it was supposed to be done in December but there's still a lot to do.
This is making the drive to and from school at John Ross difficult.
“I couldn't believe that that was how we were actually supposed to pick up and drop off our kids at school, but that's how it's getting done right now,” said Joel Frost, a concerned parent.
Frost said he was stunned when he got the email from the principal last week explaining the route.
“Drive into the north parking lot,” Frost said. “Turn right. Stop at the stop sign. Go left. Go around the roundabout, past the high school fieldhouse, through the playground and I was like I can't be reading that right.”
The City of Edmond said they've had a lot of weather delays in the process.
Originally, parents could drive on part of Thomas, which is now a dirt road to get to the school easier. But, that didn't work. Parents' cars got stuck.
So, John Ross staff said they didn't have much of a choice but to change the route.
“I know that's not ideal, and that's why our people are out working hard to try to get Thomas open so that it can be drivable so they can access from Thomas,” said Casey Moore, public information officer for the City of Edmond.
Moore said, right now, they're working on making Thomas a gravel road so parents won't have to use the other route through Edmond North.
“We don't want anyone to take an unsafe route or inconvenient route,” he said. “We are working with our contractor to try to get everything done as quickly as possible.”
Frost said, at the end of the day, there's more things to worry about in Oklahoma education than the roads. However, he said, as a parent, it's been frustrating not being able to get answers on the construction.
Frost hopes communication between the city and the school district improves in the future to diminish problems like this.
“Fix the road, and work things out so this doesn't happen again,” he said.
Moore said, depending on the weather, they hope to have Thomas Drive complete by the end of this week or next. But, they expect the entire project to be complete at the end of February.
Type of publication: Television
When was the article reported?: 01/10/2019
Publication: Oklahoma's News 4
Article Url: [Web Link]
Is Registration Required?: no
How widespread was the article reported?: local
News Category: Politics
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