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OPINIONS
Editorial: On open meetings, the vision for KineticPark and education levels
A committee searching for a site for a new school to replace Beverly Hills and Enslow middle schools recommended a site between U.S. 60 and Norway Avenue. The site is owned by Marshall University and is currently occupied by apartment buildings. However, Marshall may be about to sell the land to Prestera Center, so it might not be available for a school.
There will be time in the coming weeks to sort all that out. The important thing is that the public heard the report in an open session.
Last week, Cabell County school officials said they would recommend that the committee give its initial report in a closed session, away from where the public could hear it. That would have been wrong. While it may have been more convenient for administrators, it would have indicated to the public that something needed to be hidden.
The Board of Education didn't entertain a motion to go into executive session. It remained in open session, which was the right thing to do.
Public business should be conducted in public. How hard is that to understand?
Construction is scheduled to begin next week on a new Marriott extended-stay hotel at KineticPark. The hotel will be built on the lower level of the park near the Bob Evans restaurant.
KineticPark was envisioned as a technology-oriented development, with a commercial area on the lower level and technology-based businesses and corporate offices on the upper level. So far, some medical professional offices have been built on the upper level.
But the original vision of the park is far from reality, years after it was finished. Every now and then, Huntington city officials should remind people of what the current vision is for KineticPark. If the original vision -- formed before the tech bubble burst in the early years of this decade -- was faulty, they should admit it and say what their goals are now for KineticPark.
In late September, the Census Bureau plans to release its latest data on school enrollment. In a recent news release in advance of the new data, the bureau gave this statistic: In 2000, high school dropouts constituted 11 percent of the population 18 to 24 in the United States. In West Virginia, the number was closer to 22 percent.
The new data may give a better look at the current situation. Maybe it's better. Maybe it's worse. Either way, the number of people in West Virginia without a diploma or a GED is far too high. But until young people take responsibility for their education and their future, there's little the rest of us can do about it.
