Based on community feedback from a Nov. 26 Wayzata School Board work session, another scenario called 7A is part of the consideration for changes to the district's elementary school boundaries.

The process to make changes has been ongoing this fall with a number of board and staff meetings and public feedback forums.

Scenario 7 was not well received by some district residents including a Spring Meadows neighborhood group. Theirs and others feedback prompted the School Board to respond and the district to look at Scenario 7 and now present Scenario 7A. Spring Meadows neighborhood is west of Vicksburg Lane, north of Schmidt Lake Road and south of County Road 47 or neighborhood 7 in the scenarios that have been presented.

According to the district's website, the differences between those scenarios are (see maps of these areas with this article): 

• Neighborhood 7 was split into 7A and 7B. Spring Meadows I and II are in Neighborhood 7A and will remain at Greenwood. Future and current developments within 7B will be reassigned to Oakwood.
• Neighborhood 6 was split into 6W and 6E. The Troy Ridge and the Plymouth Greenway developments in neighborhood 6W will remain at Greenwood. Future developments within 6E will be reassigned to Oakwood.
• Neighborhood 14N and 14S were merged into a single 14. What was previously labeled Neighborhood 14N will remain at Greenwood. Future developments within Neighborhood 14 may be reassigned to a school with appropriate capacity.
• Current resident and non-resident 4th grade students will be allowed to remain in their current school for the 2013-2014 year.
• Open enrollment students will remain in their current buildings.
• Intradistrict transfers will continue to be given consideration on an annual, space-available basis.

One Spring Meadows parent, Ben Harren, is one of the neighborhood's parents that voiced his concerns about Scenario 7. Harren and his wife Michelle are fairly new to the neighborhood and have an 8-year-old, 6-year-old and twins turning 3 this month.

"Our concerns are four-fold really," Harren said. "There's an increase to an already long bus ride. With Scenario 7 kids would be passing three schools to get to Oakwood. Thirdly, all parents face this with children moving: instability. Lastly, several families in the neighborhood have established volunteer and daycare routines which will be disrupted, have to be restructured and will be diminished with being further away from our school. All this could be avoided."

Harren said he was cautiously optimistic that the Board had not only heard the concerns and suggestions of those present at the Nov. 26 meeting, but was encouraged that the Board "made good on their commitment to discuss our specific situation and alternatives to boundary change scenarios that address the issues and concerns our neighborhood had."

The Spring Meadows group had given a petition listing their concerns in mid-November and met over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend before the Nov. 26 board session. Those parents involved created a Google group to discuss the scenarios and communicate about being involved in the feedback process with the district.

The main two suggestions Harren and the Spring Meadows group had for the Board were to ensure stability above all else for their children whether that can mean better proximity to a school or developing a scenario that will ensure stability for students. 

It is anticipated that the Wayzata School Board will make its decision on how elementary school attendance boundaries will change in the next school year at its meeting at 7 p.m. Monday, Dec. 10, at Wayzata City Hall.

If you want more background information you can visit Patch's topic page that's all about Wayzata school attendance boundaries.

You can provide feedback directly to the district on Scenario 7A and the proposed boundary changes.