Acting mayor orders return of crossing guards
By Bert Lehman
The city of Clintonville issued an emergency proclamation that could return crossing guards to an intersection near St. Martin Lutheran School when Rexford Longfellow Elementary School is closed.
The proclamation comes less than a month after the Clintonville City Council approved removing crossing guards from two intersections near parochial and the public schools.
The emergency proclamation was signed on Dec. 14 by Mike Hankins, Clintonville’s acting mayor.
It acknowledged that the city council approved not providing crossing guards to St. Martin Lutheran School when Clintonville public schools are closed, but added that it was the council’s belief that St. Martin would provide a crossing guard.
“Subsequent to the council meeting, I have been informed that St. Martin’s school will not at this time provide a crossing guard as allowed by ordinance and the children will not be redirected,” Hankins said in the proclamation.
Hankins added, “I believe that an urgent and emergency issue exists to protect the children utilizing St. Martin’s pending further council meeting. I believe the circumstances that the council appropriately relied upon has changed and that the risk to the children is serious, unexpected, and potentially dangerous and requires immediate action.”
In the proclamation, Hankins directed the police chief “to utilize the resources available to provide reasonable protection to the children attending St. Martin’s school, including crossing guards.”
When the city of Clintonville posted the emergency proclamation on its Facebook page, it stated, “The city of Clintonville remains committed to the safety of children. During this unusual time of Clintonville Schools not being open every day, the Police Department will make efforts to provide additional resources to provide continued protection to St. Martin’s school children.
“The partnership between the city and the schools are important to the city and we regret that inaccurate information has been shared within the community. The potential current safety concerns raised will be presented to the city council for ongoing review.”