040501  Bedford board of ed responds to bond

By Dorothy Fallon

Critical information was omitted from the article published in your March 22 edition, "Residents Question $91M Bedford Schools Plan." This article fails to mention the Bedford Central Board of Education's central role in finalizing a facilities plan and creates the impression that every building need identified in the Citizens'Facilities Advisory Committee's report is apt to be incorporated into a final bond proposal. We would like to take this opportunity to provide background information on the facifities evaluation process to date and an explanation of how the board is to process the committee's recommendations over the weeks to come.

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: 1) to assess the effect that enrollment growth and the new state-mandated teaming standards will have on the district's facilities; and 2) to examine current physical conditions in each of the district's eight buildings.

Over the course of the next three months, the board will continue to examine these 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 last month's presentation to the board, the Facilities Advisory Committee identified projects totaling $91.1 million, 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 consultants study of traffic conditions at the Fox Lane Campus. These preliminary estimates must still be reviewed by Andron Construction, the board's recently appointed construction management firm. Andron will assist in finding ways to achieve cost efficiencies and savings.

The recent article mentions our districts January 1997 bond referendum, in which voters approved a $17.8 million spending plan to fund district-wide renovations, as well as building expansion at two elementary schools and the Fox Lane Middle School. 'the Facilities Advisory Committee involved in the preparation of the 1997 bond proposal had, in fact, identified $43 million in needed repairs and improvements. In an effort to garner public support, the spending plan was whittled down considerably, resulting in a bond that addressed only the most critical and pressmig needs. Many of these previously identified conditions remain today, and Fox Lane High School, a 45year old facility minimally considered in the 1997 referendum is expected to experience an enrollment increase of 40 percent over the next eight years.

Determination of the final scope of a construction plan and a long-range capital plan is the responsibility of the board of education. We will continue to address these issues 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, we have scheduled a series of public hearings at facilities identified by the committee for major renovation as follows: Fox Lane High School, Wednesday, April 18; Pound Ridge Elementary, 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. Two additional public hearings will be held at Fox Lane Middle School on Thursday, May 24, and Wednesday, May 30.,

Dorothy Fallon is president of the Bedford Central School District

Board of Education.