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Show oo SCHOOL DOUSES ARE TO BE OPENED TO THE PUBLIC Acting upon his own opinion, formed form-ed long ago, and upon recent appeals 1 from progressive citizens of cities 1 and counties. Senator Joseph Chez I will introduce in the coming legislature legisla-ture a bill providing for the free use of every public schoolhouse in the state as a neighborhood or civic center, cen-ter, with light, heat and janitor service serv-ice adequately provided at public expense, ex-pense, so that the residents of each community, of which the school-houso j is the social center, may meet and discuss any and all subjects pertaining pertain-ing to the educational, political, economic, eco-nomic, artistic and moral interests of the citizens of the respective communities. commu-nities. Law Not Mandatory. The law will not be mandatory. The school board will retain discretionary authority to refuse the use of any school-house for any purpose, but the board is given authority to grant the free use of any school-house for the stated purposes, on application, and to pay the expenses of the meeting. If a school-house is used for an entertainment en-tertainment to which an admission fee is charged, the directors can charge for the light, heat and janitor service. At present, said Senator Chez, manv country communities would like to use the school-houses for recreational recrea-tional purposes, but the directors refuse re-fuse the use of the buildings and grounds because they lack authority to do otherwise. The bill is designed to meet this need. Real Civic Centers. Senator Chez said ho personally would like to see the school-houses and public buildings more fully used by the people; that large capital is thus invested and the buildings are used onlv to a limited extent. His aim, he said, was to draft a bill giving giv-ing the people permission to make every ev-ery school-house a real neighborhood center, from which great benefits would flow. The Idea is not original with him, I he said. It has been adopted in many progressive states and the results have been gratifying far beyond the hopes of the legislators. , |