Kathleen Johnson

Wayne
June 9, 2014
Mr. Anthony Giaimo
Superintendent of Police
Tredyffrin Township Police Department
1100 DuPortail Rd.
Berwyn, PA 19312-1079
Dear Superintendent Giaimo:

I am writing this letter as a concerned stakeholder and member of the
Tredyffrin/Easttown School District community
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, to address the approved fencing
project that is scheduled to begin in the five elementary schools on June 24. I am not at
all alone in my concerns, and speak on behalf of numerous neighbors, families and
parents, and therefore suggest that it would be both reasonable and respectful for you to
listen closely to these concerns, and give them very careful consideration.

Many of us will be at the Facilities Meeting on June 13, and we think it beneficial that
you have a bullet point agenda from our group of TE stakeholders, to consider in
advance in order to facilitate a more thoughtful and well-reasoned discussion.

1) SAFETY -- This fencing project severely DIMINISHES the safety of our
children!

It does not require a vivid imagination to envision a scenario where the best
option is to get the children out as fast as possible, and as far away as possible.
The school board has told us that none of the designed evacuation plans are
designed to get the children off the property. WE CAN ONLY HOPE THAT
THIS IS NOT TRUE! Would you like to be responsible for an incident where
kids were trapped inside the property and, for that matter, aid was trapped
outside?? If this is not in the evacuation scenario, it should be considered NOW.
And consider it also where three sides of the property have a fence that really only
limits access to kids and law-abiding citizens.

At New Eagle, the fencing will only allow access to and from the school at Pugh
Rd. So somehow 400 students will need to be corralled up the open driveway all

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My children are currently in first, third and fourth grade at New Eagle, and my fourth
will soon begin kindergarten. We live on Monteith Drive, and our children walk to New
Eagle, which is across the street from us. Our neighborhood children have safely walked
to school for thirty years.
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the way to Pugh Road? A 10 year old would tire from running that distance
consider the frightened 5 year old.

Perhaps the incident begins with actors coming from, or blocking off, Pugh Rd
(the easiest, and very open access since everything else is fenced in) Pugh Rd is
then removed from the evacuation equation as an option completely.

Perhaps there is one, or maybe two gates in the fencing. Now we have 400
students, plus teachers and staff, attempting to evacuate through them. How fast
will that happen?

Who is really fooled into thinking that fencing will do anything when there is
COMPLETE OPEN ACCESS at one side of the property? The costs for this are
immense. The benefits NONE. Delay? Really? A bad guy will really be
slowed down entering a property with one OPEN entrance and a five-foot, easily
climbable, easily cuttable fence? Is this purported delay really worth the cost?

By the way, at Sandy Hook, some of the neighbors were on the scene quicker than
emergency responders (for example there was a nurse who rushed to be of
assistance). Not such a bad thing having potential heroes living within 30 seconds
of the school.

Playground concern we are told this is a concern of the teachers. It is a
frightening and disheartening sign of our times that we cannot place our children
in a bulletproof bubble all day long. But someone can quite easily shoot children
through a fence. Unfortunately, a perimeter fence will not alleviate those
concerns. If there is a concern of children running off during recess, then only
fence in the playground not the perimeter of the school.


2) COST/BENEFIT

Monetary cost = $220,000
Safety cost = lives in the event of an emergency; injuries and lives to those from
the bordering neighborhoods who decide to walk to the playgrounds and ball
fields on Pugh Rd, or just go ahead and climb the fence
Inconvenience cost = children now must be bused to a school that is
LITERALLY in their backyard
Aesthetics cost = UGLY. Beautiful suburban schools, beautiful neighborhoods,
beautiful properties. Plus a chain-link fence?
Benefit = None (a reasonable person cannot possibly think a five foot chain link
fence on only three sides of the perimeter creates such a delay that would actually
save lives -- and is worth the above cost).
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3) NEIGHBORHOOD ACCESS

By removing any access to the Monteith Drive side of the school, the entire
neighborhood no longer has safe access to the school! Are the neighbors the bad
guys? Moreover, what about the child who decides that he/she wants to get to
the playground or fields without finding someone to drive him/her, and walks on
Pugh, or climbs the fence? It most certainly WILL happen some day.

Our neighborhood children have safely walked to school for thirty years
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, and
even those who do not walk to school have enjoyed the benefits of this beautiful
suburban school in their backyard, most notably through the use of the
playgrounds and ball fields. In fact, our street even helps to facilitate overflow
parking during all-school events. Children who walk to school must now take a
bus to a school that is LITERALLY in their own backyard.

The school grounds are constantly used when school is not in session during the
summertime, weekends, after school. Do we rely on someone remembering to
lock and unlock a gate every single day, 365 days a year for access in and out?
What about an incident that happens when school is not in session and someone
forgot to unlock the gate?

If our elected officials disappoint their stakeholders and decide to compromise the
security of New Eagle with this fencing project, we must address another significant
concern -- the aesthetics and utility of a chain-link fence.

Please take some time to review the attached Hanover Research Report, School
Fencing: The Benefits and Disadvantages, November 2013. See
http://www.wssca.org/pdf/School%20Fencing-
%20Benefits%20and%20Disadvantages.pdf (Attachment A). This report notes
that fencing around schools needs to be considered on a school-by-school basis.

The Hanover research report has found that chain-link fences, while the most
economical option, have little to no effect in stopping a breach of the fenced
perimeter. These reasons are obvious: this type of fence can be easily cut,
climbed, and pulled up to gain access. The report suggests that chain-link fences
are only useful in defining vague property boundaries. That is not the case with
New Eagle, which already has well-established boarders.


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TE cannot require children from Monteith to walk because it children to must cut
through neighbors yards to avoid Pugh Rd. However, the neighbors not only allow it,
but also have fostered it since 1974. The school has created a crosswalk for these
walkers, and the carpool staff helps the kids cross the parking lot. While the school
district cannot require children to walk, fencing will DISSALLOW it.
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The Hanover Research Report strongly suggests that fencing should create a
balance between aesthetics and security. Please drive around the beautiful
neighborhoods of New Eagle, and take note that chain-link fences are essentially
non-existent.

Please see the attached photos of a perimeter fence that was recently constructed
at Radnor Elementary School (Attachment B). For most of the property, it is an
aesthetically pleasing wrought-iron type fence. Note how the fence changes to
match the neighbors fencing where the school borders residential homes it is a
wooden rail fence that creates easy access in the event of an emergency. Please
also note the gate, which is clearly installed for the purpose of neighborhood
access.


Creating a prison is not the goal. By haphazardly trying to create a pseudo-prison, you
are severely compromising the safety and security of our students and community
members. Again, would you like to be responsible for an emergency situation that
was made worse by the implementation of this fencing project?




Sincerely,




Kathleen Johnson




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Attachment A


http://www.wssca.org/pdf/School Fencing- Benefits and Disadvantages.pdf


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Attachment B




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