HOBSONS Bay deputy mayor Tony Briffa has slammed a State Government decision that could lead to the sale of the Altona West Primary School site.
The school, located in Belmar Ave, Altona, merged with another school in 2007 and the pupils are due to move later this year.
Cr Briffa said residents had raised concerns about the future of the school’s location with him.
“The government wants to sell it off for top dollar. This usually means high density housing,” Cr Briffa said.
“My view is that this land should be retained by the Department of Education for the Altona College. The college is only a prep to year 9 school, which means we have no public high schools beyond year 9 in all of Altona, Seaholme, Altona Meadows and Laverton South,” he said.
Last week, Star reported some Hobsons Bay residents were disappointed there was no government secondary school which offers Year 10 to 12 in the four suburbs.
Star contacted the Education Department to see if they were planning to sell the school site, but received no reply.
However, a spokesman for the State Government said if other government departments or councils had no interest in keeping former school sites, they would be “put on the market.”
In a letter to Cr Briffa, an electorate officer for the previous Altona MP Lynne Kosky wrote “when the school is no longer occupied by the school community the Education Department will annex this area as surplus to their requirements.”
“All buildings on the current site will be demolished,” the letter said.
Ms Koksy’s electorate officer said Hobsons Bay City Council had shown no interest in the site.
The State Government spokesman said funds from the sale of former schools go back into the state’s capital works programs.
– Alesha Capone
