Months of community outreach to explain the need for a construction completion bond paid off for the Bedford Central School District on Tuesday. District residents went to the polls and voted by about 70 per-cent in favor of the $8.9 million bond needed to complete work allocated in a 2002 bond of $68 million.

After district clerk Carole LaColla reported the tally after Tuesday night's vote, board president Mark Slivka said he appreciated all the work district superintendent Debra Jackson had done to inform the public over the last few months.

"Dr. Jackson had six meetings, countless discussions, wrote an article in the newspaper, three letters over the Internet," he said. "She was a tremendous force in presenting this to the public, and obviously the public supported what was put out."

Dr. Jackson thanked the community for their input and for their questions. "I think it was their questions that really drove us to continue to look at what we were doing, how we were sharing the information, and how we informed the public," she said. "They were outstanding in taking the time to ask questions and in listening to responses that deter-mined solutions for us. I'm pleased that the community understood the importance of completing the work started by the 2002 bond, and I am looking forward to us completing this in a timely manner."

Mr. Slivka also spoke about the residents who voted against the bond. "I would like to recognize the 477 people who voted against the bond," he said. "Recognizing their point of view is something the board has to continue to take into account. There are numerous people in the district that have problems with the escalating budget in the school district. It's a phenomenon taking place all over the state because the state is cutting back on money it gives to education, and the federal government also is making cuts to education. The way the school districts are getting funding for the most part is with school taxes."

Mr. Slivka said the board intends to find a way of keeping the taxes as low as possible.

"There are many, many concerns that are causing these taxes to rise," he said. "We will have many discussions before the next budget is out, and hopefully those who voted against this proposition and those who voted for it will turn out to express themselves in May."

A total of 1,558 votes were cast districtwide. The breakdown for votes at each elementary school was Mount Kisco, 185 yes, 89 no; Bedford Hills, 188 yes, 63 no; Pound Ridge, 310 yes, 144 no; West Patent, 173 yes, 50 no; and Bedford Village: 292 yes, 131 no.

The total cost for construction for the new Fox Lane High School and the completion of all the other projects at the middle and elementary schools will be $76,918,805. According to assistant superintendent for business and administrative services Mark Betz, the money won't have to be borrowed until 2008. Mr. Betz projected an estimated tax increase affecting the towns in 2008 based on the current assessed values and current equalization rates plus the five percent annual tax rate increase.

in the town of Bedford, for the average homeowner that amounts to an additional $73 toward, the, $8:9, million; Mount Kisco, $27; New Castle, $91; North Castle, $78; and Pound Ridge, $98. These estimated increases over a 20-year period for the average homeowner are Bedford, $2,417; Mount Kisco, $903; New Castle, $3,015; North Castle, $2,585; Pound Ridge: $3,254. The numbers are based on a 4.75 percent borrowing rate.

Last spring David Schunter of Andron Construction and architect John Geddis of Geddis Partnership informed the board that the project would need additional funds because of escalating construction costs ..while...the. district, was waiting for delayed approvals from the State Department of Education.

The original budget for the high school was $35,219,362, and now with the approved completion bond it will be able to spend an additional $5,867,852 required for completion. The estimated completion date for the high school is March 2008. The plan calls for a new three–story building that will include 47 new general classrooms, 15 science labs, 11 music rooms, and extensive renovations to the existing building.

Pound Ridge Elementary School was budgeted for $5,419,110, and will have the additional $1,170,803 for completion., -Coming in •under budget is Fox Lane Middle School, with an original total cost being $2,477,318, but now the estimated required amount to complete the middle school's construction is $2,186,169. To date, the building has had all the roofs replaced over three of the houses.

In Bedford Hills Elementary School, the additional bond will provide $305,723 needed to complete the work, in addition to the $1,991,115 in the original budget. In Bedford Village Elementary School, $8,360 will be added for its completion; the original budget was $1,552,320. At West Patent Elementary School, $145,649 is needed for completion; $1,077,143 was the original budget. At Mount Kisco Elementary School, where 50 percent of the work is done, an additional $1,889,066 will be added to the original budget of $5,419,110 to complete the construction.