To the Editor:

On Wednesday, Feb. 28, the Bedford Central Board of Education received the Citizens' Facilities Advisory Committee's long-anticipated presentation of building renovation and expansion needs. The presentation responded to the board's charge to the committee to assess the effect that enrollment growth and the new learning standards mandated by New York state will have on the district's facilities and to examine current physical conditions in each of the district's eight buildings. Following submission of the committee's full written report within the next two weeks, the board will begin to examine the findings and to develop the scope of both a construction plan, to be funded through the issuance of bonds, and a long-range renovation schedule, to be funded through the district's annual operating budgets. The board's goal will be to ensure facilities capable of sustaining the district's excellent educational program, while addressing building deficiencies in a manner that is both fiscally sound and mindful of the community's ability to pay.

In its presentation to the board, the committee identified projects totaling $91.1million, including $44.2 million in potential new construction, $22.4 million in priority renovation projects and $24.5 million in such related costs as contingencies and professional fees. Over the 14 months since its appointment, the committee has been able to draw upon a recently revised report of demographic projections, a comprehensive professional engineering survey of building conditions mandated by New York state and a consultant's study of traffic conditions at the Fox Lane Campus. These preliminary cost estimates will be reviewed by Andron Construction, the board's recently appointed construction management firm, which will assist in finding ways to achieve cost efficiencies and savings.

Determination of the final scope of a construction plan and a long-range capital plan will begin with the current 2001-2002 budget deliberations and continue throughout April, May and June. On June 20, the board will adopt a final bond proposal, to be voted upon by the community in the fall. To ensure community understanding and input, a series of public hearings has been scheduled at facilities identified by the committee for major renovation, as follows: Fox Lane High School, Wednesday, April 18; Pound Ridge Elementary School, Monday, April 23; and Mount Kisco Elementary, Tuesday, May 8. Each of these meetings, which will run from 8 to 10 p.m., will be preceded by a one hour building tour open to all members of the community. Two additional public hearings will be held at Fox Lane Middle School on Thursday, May 24, and Wednesday, May 30. The board seeks broad-based community feedback and urges all to attend these public hearings.

Bedford Central School Board Mel Comberiati, Dot Fallon Paula Kumar, Mark Slivka, Nancy Stein,  Elin Sullivan and Joseph Whelan