FARMINGTON – A request to change a bus route to drop off three Mallett School students at a day care on Chesterville Hill was rejected in a 4-10 vote by SAD 9 directors Tuesday.

Michelle Jackson, who runs the day care, and her sister-in-law, Anna Given of Wilton, appeared before the board to request that three Mallett School first- and second-graders who take the afternoon bus be left at Jackson’s home instead of the fire station in Farmington Falls. The distance from the station to the home is approximately one-half to three-quarters of a mile, Given said.

Given told directors that Jackson is her day-care provider, but one daughter attends Mallett School in Farmington. Given has been meeting the bus in the afternoon to take the children to day care because Jackson cannot leave the other children, transport all of them, or hire someone to watch or transport the children for the few minutes needed.

Concerns about early release days, snow days and personal days when she can’t pick up the children prompted the women to talk with David Leavitt, director of support services, and Nathan Reid, transportation specialist. Both denied their request. After speaking with Superintendent Michael Cormier, who also denied the request, the women then asked to speak with the board.

Time and costs were cited by Reid in denying the request. To change the route to go over Chesterville Hill, to Stinchfield Hill and back down to Route 41 would increase the route approximately 7.4 miles for a bus averaging six to eight miles a gallon, Reid estimated, an annual cost of $591 per year. Reid also figured a new route would add a half hour to the bus route. An extra half hour of work for the bus driver to provide custodial coverage at the high school would amount to $1,536 in overtime, he said.

There are also children who live along Routes 41 and 2 left at the fire station who should be dropped at their homes if the route was changed, he said.

While some directors raised concerns that safety for the children should be considered before the costs, Cormier told the board that even though he denied the request they might want to consider the fact that there is not a lot of child care available in the area.

The board is not obliged to facilitate the business, Director Mark Prentiss said.

Other directors suggested that approval of the request could set a precedent, with other parents requesting bus-route changes.

For a board that had just rejected the school consolidation plan and may be charged with decreasing transportation costs for a new consolidation plan, Director Neil Stinneford urged the board to think about the school policy and research the costs before making a change to it.