WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. By John F. Bailey. February 6, 2006: The Board of Education will be scheduling a series of meetings over the next month at each of the White Plains city schools to present the $67 Million Capital Projects plan they are considering putting out for a referendum in May on the ballot with the School Budget. Superintendent of Schools Timothy Connors announced the "bond tour" at Monday evening's Board of Education meeting.

In the discussion of the Capital Projects which followed the consent agenda, Terrence Schruers, Assistant Superintendent of Business and Russell Davidson of Kaeyer, Garment & Davidson, the architects who prepared the $67 Million proposal (trimmed from its original $95 Million program), made cases for the cost savings to be achieved by the two synthetic turf field conversions at Parker Stadium and Loucks Field, and for the wisdom for renovating the present Post Road School, or building a completely new school on the Post Road property.

Superintendent of Schools Connors began the Capital Projects discussion saying it was his plan that the Board of Education hold a series of meetings at each school in the community to get a sense of the community's feelings about the project, and then for the Board of to make a decision on either executing all of the program or parts of it in March to place a bond referendum on the May ballot.

Connors said the project is timely, and would give the district flexibility "a safety valve" to provide for two cohorts (consisting of 12 classes of 20 students, approximately 250 more students) at the elementary level expected to arrive over the the next five years. A demographer's projection was passed out at the meeting predicting growth of 300 students in the elementary schools by 2010 (from the 2,750 in 2005 to 3,050 in 1010). Connors also has said city sources expect growth of about another 250 students based on all the new development coming on stream from 2010 to 2015, projecting 3,200 students in White Plains elemenatry schools by 2015. 

Pushing for the May School Election Date.

Schruers made the point that if the proposal now being considered by the state to present school project referendums at the same time as school budgets in may, goes through, that postponing the vote from May until May 2007 would delay the project start until 2009. Davidson said an approval of the referendum in May would enable construction to start at Post Road School (either the $34 Million new school or $29 Million renovation) in the summer of 2007. Davidson also noted that the cost of the projects could go up $1.6 Million to $3.2 Million by October, if the referendum for the bond was placed on the ballot  in the fall. Davidson also noted the synthetic turf projects at Loucks and Parker Stadiums ould be completed by the Spring of 2007 if approved this spring by the voters.

Davidson says adding on to other schools alters character of elementary school balance.

Mr. Davidson answered questions the Board had presented him with last week on alternatives to refurbishing or building a new Post Road School. He rejected both Rochambeau School and Church Street School and George Washington School on the argument that it would require substantial renovation of the cafeterias, the parking areas, and pickup and dropoff areas, to increase the capacities of those schools. He noted that his firm had rejected building the 12 to 15 extra classrooms at George Washington, because that school already has the highest enrollment among the elementary schools, and would created havoc with the district's choice program. Parents, he said, would have to choose between two small enrollment schools and three large enrollment schools, and would base their choice on "bricks and mortar" (the physical layout of the schools), if George Washington or Church Street were expanded.

Mr. Schruers answered the Board's questions on leasing three classrooms to BOCES at Post Road School, noting that it would net the district $1,890,000 profit over the course of the 10 year lease, and they would get the cost of the three classroom construction costs for nothing. BOCES is willing to pay $1,153.000  towards the $1,189,000 cost of constructing the three classrooms at the new Post Road School, and pay $150,000 to lease the rooms for a $1,500,000 rental to the district over 10 years.

Synthetic Turf More Games for the Buck

On the questions pertaining to the synthetic turn conversions of Parker Stadium and Loucks Stadium, Schruers presented a report by Mike Lynch, the district Facilities and Operations Manager comparing the costs of operating synthetic fields over grass fields.

Lynch's memorandum reported that for one grass field, on a 40-week mowing cycle and 30-week usage cyucle it would cost the district $16,920 a year (with the resodding and crowning of the field every 5 to 7 years figured in). By contrast a Synthetic Turf once installed would cost approximately $21,000 a year, but could be used at a greater rate, and you could get more games in about eight times more games. 

A statistical chart in the synthetic turf memo put the cost of a Synthetic Field at $600,000, plus $21,000 maintenance over 10 years, or $621,000. By contrast a grass field would cost $300,000 to install, but with the additional maintance would cost $8004,000 to $904,000 to operate over ten years, hosting only 340 events compared to 2,800 for the synthetic field. The Parker Stadium and Loucks Stadium projects are projected at $3 Million for Parker (plus stand renovation and locker rooms, and press box), and $5.2 Million for Loucks (including press box, locker rooms, stands).

Connors to Meet With Mayor to Discuss "City Contribution."

Mr. Connors announced he was meeting with Mayor Joseph Delfino Wednesday morning to discuss how the city would contribute to the stadium renovations. When asked by Peter Bassano if the city would contribute to the financing of the projects since they use the district's fields, Connors said he was going to meet with the Mayor to discuss how the city might help with some contribution. Bassano asked if the school district would know what financial help the city would lend before the vote, Connors said no.

 Asked by WPCNR if the school district would require the city to pay fees if they did not contribute to the cost of the new synthetic fields being planned, Connors said he was sure that something could be worked out, otherwise they might have to pay fees like other outside groups do that use the fields. The sense  of the "city contribution" involved only contribution towards the playing field synthetic turfing, and that the city was not expected to provide relief for the school upgrades.

Next Problem: Middle School Enrollment.

Connors said that  the Middle School enrollment was now at 1,400 and that the school district had the option of expanding the Eastview School to accommodate the increased enrollment the district is expecting in the Middle school in the next decade. However, the cost of renovating Eastview and bringing it into code would be another substantial expense for the district.

 Connors also said that the City of White Plains is looking for a new home for its Youth Bureau currently housed at Eastview, and that once that operation left the building space would free up.

McGuire Requests More Financial Modeling. Bassano a Separate Vote.

Board Member Terry McGuire said that prior to going out to present the plan to the schools, that the district should present financially modeling of how the bond (which he pointed out goes out 30 years, not three, as is currently being presented in Board materials), impacted the budget and the individual taxpayer, in perspective with the compounding effect of expanding fixed costs that currently raise the budget automatically 9% every year, as well as the eroding assessment base. Connors reminded Mr. McGuire that the district does model. McGuire held his ground and said he felt the bond had to be presented in relation to the overall budget.

Board Member Peter Bassano expressed the hope that the board could consider the three segments that make up the Bond project individually. He felt the Board should vote on the Infrastructure piece (about $25 Million), the Stadiums piece (About $10 Million), and the Post Road School expansion (about $34 Million) separately. Connors said the board would, but did not specifically say the board would break it up into three different votes when the Board decided on which segments to execute.