Channin

Money to demolish the Channin school

State/Local Partnership

State/Local Partnership to Provide Open Space and Ball Fields in Brandywine Hundred

For Immediate Release: Wednesday, July 7, 2004
For More Information, Contact:
· State Rep. Wayne Smith, (302) 475-5460
· New Castle County Councilman Bob Weiner, (302) 395-8362
One million dollars in state money is being used to remove two aging Brandywine Hundred buildings and preserve the property on which they sit for recreation and open space.
State House Majority Leader Wayne Smith said the money to demolish the Channin and Old Mill Lane elementary schools was included in the recently-enacted state Bond Bill. Rep. Smith says the money to demolish both buildings and remediate the sites is one facet of a cooperative partnership between the Brandywine School District, New Castle County government and the State of Delaware.
The Brandywine School District, which owns both sites, will enter into a long-term lease with New Castle County's Special Services division. Rep. Smith said the county will then sublease the Channin site to Concord Soccer Association and the Old Mill Lane site to the Talleyville Girls Softball League.
New Castle County Councilman Robert Weiner said the arrangement is the culmination of lengthy negotiations and research. “After a six-month exhaustive process that included surveying area residents, holding community meetings and working with the Channin Civic Association, the Liftwood Civic Association and other area groups, we reached a consensus that these properties should be used for active recreation.”
Councilman Weiner said the existing fields at both sites have been used by sports teams for the last 20 years. He said the new arrangement clarifies and delineates the use of the property. He also noted that the proposed arrangement was fashioned only after the concerns of area residents about parking, the operation of the fields and their use by the general public had been addressed.
The leagues will be responsible for raising the money to develop athletic fields at both locations. Under the terms of the agreement, the county will allow public use of both sites when league play is not scheduled. The initial length of the lease has yet to be negotiated, but Rep. Smith said it will be long enough to allow the leagues to fully depreciate their investments in the field complexes.
Dr. Bruce Harter, superintendent of the Brandywine School District, said the arrangement addresses a couple of concerns regarding the former schools, both of which have been closed for about two decades.
“Our concern was that these buildings presented an on-going attraction for vandalism and that they were going to become larger problems as they continued to deteriorate,” Dr. Harter said. “This solution eliminates that situation and will provide area residents with valuable recreational opportunities.”

Additionally, Dr. Harter said the deal with allow the district to shed itself of an unwanted expense. “We had budgeted about $15,000 per year to maintain the grounds and buildings on those sites. Now we’ll be able to re-direct those dollars to where they can be better used elsewhere in the district.”
“This is something I’ve been exploring for the last six years, but it only began to pick up momentum after there was a leadership change at the Brandywine School District,” said State Rep. Bob Valihura, in whose district the Channin Elementary School property is located. “The current superintendent and school board should be congratulated for their cooperation and willingness to turn an eyesore into a valuable community asset.”
The district will retain ownership of the property and will continue to have the option of using it in the unlikely event that a need develops. However, Rep. Smith said this deal will ensure that neither site is commercially developed and secures both parcels for recreation into the foreseeable future. Last year, the Delaware Development Office had briefly floated the idea of bringing a financial services firm to the Channin site -- a proposal that was widely denounced by area residents.
Councilman Weiner said this deal resembles the one he and Rep. Smith put together to save the Woodshaven-Kruse property in 2002. That 26-acre property, the site of a former home for wayward girls near Claymont, had been vacant for 10 years. It was transferred from state to county ownership for use as a park. He said this deal is similar in that it involves an innovative state-county partnership, state money will pay for the demolition of the existing buildings and the ground is being used to serve community needs.
"This is a win-win-win for everybody," Rep. Smith, said. "The soccer and softball organizations get the additional space they need, Brandywine School District cuts expenses and we enhance recreational opportunities for thousands of area children. That helps kids, it helps families and it actually creates open space in an area that’s under intense development pressure."
“This is great, now our kids will have two additional places to play soccer and softball in the Brandywine area,” said State Senator Cathy Cloutier. “I think using Bond Bill dollars in this way is very smart in that we’re getting multiple benefits from the same expenditure.”
“Concord Soccer Association is very excited to take this significant step towards developing top quality soccer fields that we’ll be able to call our home in Brandywine Hundred,” said Dan Hammond, a member of the association’s board of directors. “We greatly appreciate the work of our local county councilman, state representatives and senators who brought attention to the need for the Brandywine School District to demolish these potentially dangerous buildings and provide Concord Soccer Association with the opportunity to continue to develop youth through the sport of soccer.”


“Rep. Smith’s leadership and commitment during this two-year quest to address the active recreation needs of Brandywine Hundred youth is to be applauded,” Councilman Weiner said. “He secured $1 million to make this vision a reality. It’ll be a pleasure to see these eyesores replaced by the sight of hundreds of playing children.”
“I want to thank Rep. Smith, Councilman Weiner and our entire state legislative delegation for making this a reality,” Dr. Harter said.
No firm date for when the demolition contracts will be bid, or when the buildings will be removed, has yet been set.

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