Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Education topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Planning commission recommends conditional use for Academy of Excellence high school at former St. Rita's campus
Summary
The commission voted to recommend a conditional use permit for the Academy of Excellence to operate a Christian high school at the former St. Rita's school building at 6021 W. Lincoln Ave.; staff flagged parking, landscaping and future building-permit requirements and the item will go to the Common Council on March 18.
Chair Wayne Clark and planning staff reviewed a proposal to convert the former St. Rita's school building at 6021 W. Lincoln Ave. into a Christian high school operated by Academy of Excellence. The Planning Commission recommended approval of the conditional use permit and related site considerations; the item will advance to the Common Council for a public hearing scheduled for March 18.
Steve, a planning staff member presenting the file, said the applicant proposes standard school hours with after-school activities, plans to lease the gymnasium and a north parking lot from St. Barnabas/Saint Rita's, and expects initial enrollment of about 100–125 students with the capacity for more in the future. "They currently have another high school on Wind Lake Road in Milwaukee, and that's about a hundred students there right now," Steve said. He added the school hopes to begin classes Sept. 1 of this year.
Staff advised that the site is zoned C-2 and schools are permitted as a conditional use; recommended conditions include landscaping improvements at the main driveway on Sixtieth Street, an upgraded refuse enclosure, bicycle parking on the south side, and building- and occupancy-permit reviews to ensure code compliance. Steve noted food service will be brought on site from an off-site kitchen: meals would be prepared off-site by Center for Independence and delivered to the school cafeteria.
Presenters said buses (four to five) will stage in the leased north parking lot and that the gym will be used only for school activities (not tournaments). The applicant described an initial plan to purchase the former school building and lease parking and the gym while discussions continue with St. Barnabas and the archdiocese about potential acquisition of additional parcels on the block in the future.
Commissioners asked questions about enrollment and funding (state school-choice funding was identified as the primary source). After motion and second, the commission voted to recommend the conditional use permit; the transcript records two abstentions and a successful motion. The recommendation includes conditions for landscaping and a required review of building and occupancy permits before occupancy.
