New York City will build new high school in Queens

From The New York Times: Maspeth, a blue-collar neighborhood with a small-town feel in the Queens section of New York City, is going to get a high school. In a 38-to-10 vote, the City Council approved a proposal to build a $70 million school there, with room for 1,100 students. The plan had come under attack by residents who wanted neighborhood children to have priority in admission to the new school.The city opposed granting any preference, saying it would further stratify the 1.1 million-student school system.

MARCH 2009...From The New York Times: In a section of Queens with some of New York City’s most crowded schools, a plan to replace an old restaurant supply store with a gleaming $70 million high school for 1,100 students might seem irresistible. But the proposal has instead become a flashpoint of contention over how public school enrollment should be determined, and if a compromise is not reached soon, the plan may be scuttled. Residents of one neighborhood in the district, Maspeth, have long lamented the lack of a high school there, and they want to give local children a leg up in getting into the new school. But that aspiration runs counter to the city's position that giving certain students an advantage threatens to further splinter the system by class, leaving families lacking savvy and resources to attend some of the worst schools.