MEET THE BAUMANN SCHOOL BUS DRIVERS
SCHOOLS
021805 BOCES officials urge `yes' vote to
sell 30-acre parcelTo the Editor:
On March 1, we are asking the residents of all 18 school districts in the Putnam/Northern Westchester BOCES to authorize BOCES to sell a 30-acre parcel of land on the BOCES main campus to the Somers Central School District for $1.9 million. The value of the land was determined by two independent appraisals.
The Somers School District has been experiencing continued increasing enrollment and needs land on which to build a school. BOCES has a 240-acre main campus, half of which
is in the Somers School District. After careful consideration, we have determined that we can sell a 30-acre section of our campus and still have ample space to run our programs, now and in the future.If the voters authorize this sale, the BOCES board must then vote to sell the land to Somers. Somers must complete a state environmental quality review and conduct its own referendum to seek approval from its voters to purchase the land and build a school.
If the sale goes through, 75 percent of the proceeds will be retained by BOCES and 25 percent returned to the local school districts. We will use our portion to pay for much-needed capital projects at our 35-year-old buildings. Funds for capital projects at BOCES must come from the local districts. By using proceeds from this sale, we can avoid asking you, the taxpayers, for money.
We hope that you will vote "yes" on March 1. Selling this land will benefit BOCES, Somers, and your school district. Voting will be in a school building in each district from 2 p.m. until 9 p.m. Call your district or check their Web site, or call BOCES (245-2700) to find out where to vote.
Anita Feldman,
President P/NW BOCES
Joan Austin,
Vice President P/NW BOCES
Yorktown Heights