‘The imprecise science of demographics'

To the editor: In light of the decision that the taxpayers of Warwick will be making Dec. 12 regarding a tuition agreement to bring 300 Greenwood Lake students to our high school, I found it interesting to read the article (in the Times Herard-Record) entitled “$70 million gamble” in the Nov. 9 edition, pertaining to Goshen, who are trying to plan for the demographics of their area - that is planning for future growth or decline in student population. It cited the Sullivan West School District, which built a new high school that it didn’t really need, and Monroe-Woodbury, which had to add on to its new high school when it was only four-year old. Most interesting was the $70 million dollar building proposal that voters in Goshen will face just a week before our vote. Their demographics expert has found that a desirable town like Goshen will continue to grow and that the classroom space will be an issue. Certainly I feel that Warwick is on par with Goshen in terms of being an attractive area in which to settle and raise a family. Of all the reasons to vote for or against having Greenwood Lake students come to Warwick Valley High School the issue that concerns me the most is this potential space problem. I am not at all convinced that if a problem should develop it would be easy or even possible to end our relationship with Greenwood Lake. In what some parents have already said is a crowded high school I am just not enough of a gambler to risk our 300-student cushion based on the imprecise science of “demographics.” Helen Cahill Warwick