Letter to the editor: Health concerns at the schools
Please note: This letter reflects opinions regarding the November 2022 school referendum to construct a new, combined elementary and middle school. It does not represent the current 2024 Cape Elizabeth school proposal.
BY ANASTASIA NORMAN
As a local primary care physician and mom of three Pond Cove kids, the schools are a pretty big part of my life. I was concerned to hear about the ‘mouse incident’ in the cafeteria recently, and saddened that this has been such a recurrent issue at the school.
One concern that has been on my mind, in particular, is potential spread of infection. The deer mouse and the white footed mouse are both hosts for Hantavirus, a problem I haven’t thought about since medical school, when I worked as a volunteer at our community free clinic. Living in Bronx, New York, we saw infections that were relatively rare in other, more prosperous areas. The irony is not lost on me that we moved out of NYC and into one of the best school districts in
Maine, only to potentially encounter this issue again.
The problem is not one that can be fixed with bait, or traps, or by fixing leaking roofs. The problem is a thin, cracked slab foundation. A slab that is too thin and old to build a second story, to provide insulation from cold and heat, or to prevent mouse and insect intrusion. “Renovation” in this case entails dismantling the buildings and re-pouring the foundation itself. Renovate or rebuild, either will be pricey. But no matter how the referendum vote goes next month, this is not a problem that is going away soon.
