WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. By John F. Bailey. December 20, 2005: The architects preparing the five year facilities plan for the Board of Education presented a sharply lower renovation and infrastructure plan for the School District last night which has the district taking care of only Priority 1 and 2 infrastructure items, and proposing the building of a new Post Road School, and artificial surfacing of Loucks Field and increasing its capacity to only 2,500. Surfacing of Eastview athletic fields and the Highlands Parker Stadium was eliminated, but the Parker Stadium field surfacing is still being considered.

Board of Education Hears Trimmed Bond Plan Last Night at Education House. Russ Davidson addressed the Board of Education. Superintendent of Schools Timothy Connors is seen at far left, seated. The meeting was videotaped and will be telecast on the School Channel 77 this week. Photo, WPCNR News.

New Proposal: Now under analysis by the Board of Education. Totals of dollars to be sent on each facility are at far right. Photo, WPCNR News.

The new Preliminary Proposal before the board calls for spending $67.5 Million over five years instead of the previously considered amount of $95 Million.  A total of $35 Million of that $67.5 Million investment is for construction of a new school at Post Road.

The Board plans to issue a Request for Proposals with a few weeks for a Construction Manager to analyze specific costs as the plan is considered and moves forward.

Superintendent of Schools Timothy Connors emphasized that no decision has been made to go ahead with any portion of the plan at this time, and any adaption of a construction plan awaited intense Board discussion of the options presented last night.

Connors said the district enrollment was seen as steady over the next five years but was 10% over facility capacity at this time. He allowed that  "we could get hurt if there was a sudden increase in class size."

$66 Increase in Taxes to Bond

Assistant Superintendent for Business Terrance Schreurs noted to the handful of observers and the board that the cost to the taxpayers of a $65 Million Bond would not be felt until the budget year 2007-2008. He said the bond would raise the school taxes of the average White Plains residence ($15,000 Assessed Valuation), $58.05 in 07-08, $70.50 in 08-09, and $69 in 2009-20010. This carrying cost of the bond would be in addition to tax increases required by future school budgets in those years, and whatever tax certioraris might impact the School District.

Tax Rate Increases From Proposed Construction Bond and Certiorari Bonding. The handwriting shows the combined increase in the tax rate per $1,000 of assessed valuation from the new $67.5 Million bond combined with projected certiorari refund bonding.  There would be no bond cost in 2006-07, but there would be a $6.88 increase in the tax rate due to the school cert liability already committed for. In 2007-2008 the new bond would cost taxpayers $3.87 and an additional $6.25 in cert repaying for a total of $10.12/per $1,000 of assessed valuation. The combined impact of certs and the new construction bond on Mr. & Mrs. & Ms. White Plains would drop to 4.76 in 08-09 and 4.65 in 09-10.  Photo, WPCNR News.

The Tax Impact. Photo, WPCNR News

The Board’s Peter Bassano said he was not convinced that the District needed to do any of the renovations and infrastructure upgrading proposed. He thought the 16 day time frame of deciding on the specifics of the project prior to January 6 was too short.

Russell Davidson the principal of the architectural firm handling the Facilities Plan for the city advised the Board the renovations were not in any way mandatory or required to be done by the state. He said that in order to do anything, though, the district needed a survey of facilities and plans to be submitted to the state.

Donna McLaughlin, President of the Board of Education, expressed the thought that the district was not locked in to a bond referendum at the same time as the District Budget Vote in May, though referendums had always been done in the past in conjunction with the budget vote.

Russell Davidson, the principal architect on the project for the School District noted that the skyrocketing construction costs (projected at increasing 9.5% in 2005)  indicated that the renovations and infrastructure would only cost more in the future. (Blue Bar indicates cost of construction. Photo, WPCNR News

Preliminary Timetable for a May Vote Issued.

A tentative  draft timetable for pulling together the paperwork and community information necessary to present a bond to the District in May at budget time was presented. According to this timetable, the Board is to consider what projects if any, are to be done, and decided the bonding amount by January 6.

Draft Schedule for a May, 2005 Bond Referendum. Photo, WPCNR News

After the meeting the Board members agreed that they would be discussing the Preliminary Proposal in early January on a schedule for presenting individual school renovation plans to the residents of the district in mid-January.