Arizona Republic from Phoenix, Arizona • Page 489

15 THE MESA REPUBLIC WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2007 School expansion plan spurs concerns for parking, safety Try 'a taste of Queen Creek' at academy's fiesta cookoff SE VALLEY NEWS their own recipes with their choice of preparing chili, salsa or pie. Monday is the deadline for application. Taster ballots will be provided for attendees to vote for their favorite dishes after tasting. Prize packages valued around $50 will be awarded to winners of each category after judging is completed by 5:30 p.m. Activities include live music by a Christian rock group, a rock climbing wall, arts and crafts booths, hair braiding and more.

Vendors will be selling products as well as karate, dance, art or music services. Big Daddy's Grill, Dippin' Dots, and Uncle Bears Bar and Grill will provide a taste of their restaurants as well as some give-aways and donations. "You can come and have a taste of Queen Creek," Healy said. "We're looking forward to seeing people come out and have a lot of fun." Info: (480) 993-7580 or to enter the contest, www.freedomca.orgre-sources have bought a house here," she said. Tim Ihms, Surrey Garden principal, says the school strives to be a good neighbor.

"If we didn't think we could do that with the building project, I wouldn't be doing this," he said. The project will bring seven new classrooms to the school, to house 60 more high school students, and new teachers and staff. Work is expected to start in February and be completed Aug. 1. The school, near the northwest corner of Higley and Ray roads, has 491 students and 47 faculty and staff.

The project won't affect current parking. The expansion is expected to add 20 cars per day, Ihms said. But at least 15 spots are open daily. While he said illegal parking is "pretty consistent" for special events, he said the school's parents have been pretty good about not parking illegally. Darrell Truitt, design review board chairman, raised concerns about the parking capacity and said the board has seen this issue come up "over and over and over again" with similar projects.

By Stephanie Eib STEP HAN IE. El B(iJ) ARIZONA RE PUBLIC.COM Freedom Christian Academy in Queen Creek is celebrating fall without pumpkins, ghosts, witches or goblins at it's Fall Fiesta cookoff Saturday. A contest for best entries of chili, salsa and pie, will be from 3 to 6 p.m. at the school, 39731 N. Kennedy Drive.

Cost is $7 for adults and $3 for children. Proceeds benefit the school. Admission pays for as much chili, salsa and pie as one can taste with a drink and one ticket for a raffle drawing of prizes every half hour. "We wanted to do something a bit untraditional," said Keather Christian Academy principal. "It's a unique way to approach the fall." Healy said the idea for the festivities came after a PTO meeting discussion.

"We wanted to be original," she said. "Someone said 'fiesta' and it made us think of having a party and fun involving everyone." For an entry fee of $10, contestants can add a homemade touch by using By David van den Berg David.vandenbergarizonarepublic.com Surrey Garden Christian School, located in Gilbert's Agritopia community, is one step closer to expanding. But for Shoshana Roller, an Agritopia resident, the school expansion is "an accident waiting to happen." Roller expressed that view last week during the town's Design Review Board meeting. The board approved the site plan, grading and drainage, building elevations, and landscaping plan for the school addition. The approval was conditioned on the submittal of a traffic impact analysis report Roller cited concerns about parents illegally parking while waiting to pick up children and speeding through the neighborhood.

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