RSS 2.0 FeedThursday, December 8, 2011, Merrick Life
Vote Monday - North Merrick Schools
Capital referendum put out to the community.
On Thursday night the North Merrick School board met to discuss a special district vote being held on Monday December 12th to release capital reserve funds for a number of school improvement projects. The meeting was held at 7:30 pm at Camp Avenue School and attended by about 40 residents. The vote will be held on December 12th at Fayette School between the hours of 2pm and 10pm. According to school superintendent David Feller all district residents who have voted in a previous election should be eligible to vote.
Mr. James Saitta Director of School Facilities explained that the reserve fund was established by voters on May 19th 2009 to amass funds not to exceed 1.4 million for district improvements. The fund currently has 1.2 million dollars. Mr. Saitta said releasing these funds to do the district projects would not result in any increase in the tax levy. The fund was created for district improvements and to specifically address certain facility needs including: Handicapped Accessibility as per the Americans with Disabilities Act, drainage and site work, flooring, removal and replacement of damaged asbestos flooring and refurbishments of gymnasium safety equipment.
Mr. Saitta said of the distribution of the funds, “I tried to divvy this up between all three buildings so each would have a stake in coming out to vote.”
According to a letter from Mr. Feller, the proposition includes the following projects and their estimated costs:
1. Concrete and asphalt repairs at the Camp Avenue and Old Mill Road Schools - $552,000
2. Removal and replacement of asbestos flooring at the Camp Avenue, Harold D. Fayette and Old Mill Road Schools - $232,000
3. Renovations in compliance with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) at the Harold D. Fayette and Old Mill Road Schools - $339,000
4. Renovation of gymnasium safety equipment at the Harold D. Fayette School - $20,000
5. Contingences and Adjustment of Estimates - $57,000
Mr. Saitta said if the vote is approved the district architect must draw up plans which then need to be approved by the State Education Department. This might take a total of four to eight weeks. At that point he said individual projects can be put to bid. He said the best case scenario is that work on the improvement projects could begin this summer 2012.
Mr. Feller’s letter included a building by building highlight.
Camp Avenue:
Expansion of the existing bus loop to provide for safer entry and egress as well as additional parking; site work to address important drainage issues; and removal of asbestos flooring in designated classrooms
Harold D. Fayette:
Renovation of two student restrooms to make ADA compliant, replacement of hot water heater and gymnasium padding, removal of asbestos flooring in designated hallways as well as in the General Purpose Room and Kitchen.
Old Mill Road:
Concrete replacement in the bus loop and rear of the building to address drainage issues, replacement of two student restrooms to make ADA compliant, and asbestos floor replacement in selected classrooms.
For more detailed information on exactly what money would go for which project log onto the district website. http://www.nmerrickschools.org/news.cfm?story=86460
