Utah has always been a high-risk earthquake area. But it seems something of an overreaction to start pondering plans to merge Salt Lake high schools and remodel or replace all school buildings to make them earthquake resistant. The cost in a time of serious basic education needs could be all out of proportion to any immediate danger.
An ongoing seismic study by the Salt Lake Board of Education is examining ways to upgrade schools so they could handle a moderate to severe earthquake. The three aging, multilevel high schools are a priority concern. One suggested option is to merge the three into two high schools.Yet a phase of that study prepared this week by consultant John Reed Call suggests that trying to merge high schools would create many new problems of student body size, classroom space, curriculum choices and disciplinary problems.
Certainly, there is nothing wrong with moving students and closing schools as situations require. But such steps should be related to population changes, building use and efficiency, rather than a fear of earthquakes alone.
Some would argue that this approach leaves schoolchildren at risk in dangerous buildings. But the danger is essentially no greater than any other time since the high schools were built. An earthquake that could knock down East High School, for example, would have knocked it down just as easily 50 years ago.
In any case, closing a functioning school and drawing new boundaries is not easily done.
South High was closed in 1988 because of a dwindling population and boundaries were redrawn for East, West, Highland. The whole exercise became an emotional issue that left scars even to this day.
How much more traumatic would it be to close a high school and create two cumbersome, overcrowded, problem-ridden survivors - merely in the name of uncertain earthquake potential? The clashes of neighborhoods, school traditions and even legal battles would be deep and impassioned.
Clearly, a modest program to close some schools and upgrade and replace others in the name of earthquake safety makes sense. But such a program should be closely related to school population needs.
The consultant's recommendation that a demographic study be done to determine enrollment and building needs over the next decade is a sensible first step. After all, the Salt Lake district has seen a steady decline in high school and general population since the late 1970s.
Given time and a shrinking population, it may be possible to close one of the three aging high schools for earthquake safety - and other reasons - without causing the remaining two high schools to become even bigger problems in a social and academic sense.