
                         THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
                 Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, June 24, 1994                    TAG: 9406230151 
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON                     PAGE: 04    EDITION: FINAL  
SOURCE: BY ELIZABETH THIEL, STAFF WRITER 
DATELINE: 940624                                 LENGTH: VIRGINIA BEACH

HIGH-PRICED HIGH-TECH FLAGPOLE CALLED `RIDICULOUS' EXPENDITURE\

{LEAD} Towering 100 feet above ground atop the city's newest high school is a $42,151 flagpole that, at the touch of an electronic switch or a signal from a sun-sensor, will automatically unfurl the American flag folded within its shaft.

Some school officials say the Ocean Lakes High School flagpole is a tribute to patriotism and the importance of education.

{REST} But Superintendent Sidney L. Faucette said that he did not authorize the expense and that ``it's a ridiculous amount of money to spend for a flagpole.''

Regular flagpoles cost from $1,500 to $2,500.

The high-tech flagpole has raised questions among some parents about the spending priorities of school officials.

`I just don't understand,'' said Amy Courtney, a parent with two children in public schools. ``I get very confused as a parent, because they say we're in a big money crunch.''

Faucette said he and School Board members were not told that the flagpole was part of the nearly $28 million Ocean Lakes school, which is to open in the fall.

``Had it come across my desk, I would have vetoed it,'' he said.

The flagpole was authorized by former Assistant Superintendent Andrew T. Carrington. The School Board voted in November not to renew Carrington's contract for reasons that were not divulged.

At the time, school officials privately attributed his dismissal to spending decisions.

Carrington, who is suing to get his job back, declined to comment Friday.

Earlier this year, city budget planners criticized school system spending.

During negotiations over the school system's capital improvements budget, some city officials accused the School Board of not using its space efficiently and of spending too much money on building projects.

Faucette said: ``We've tried to tighten up the controls. I've made it clear to them (staff) that in the future, anything that's out of the ordinary has to come across my desk.''

Ocean Lakes, Virginia Beach's 10th high school, is in the southern part of the city in the recently developed Ocean Lakes community, just north of the Navy's Dam Neck Fleet Combat Training Center. by CNB