$14.4 million school project slated for vote

Voters will decide Dec. 16on a plan that includes upgrading the elementary school's heating system.

ELLENVILLE » The Board of Education has scheduled a Dec. 16 referendum for district residents to vote on a $14.4 million plan to upgrade the elementary school’s 50-year-old heating system and replace roofs on all three district buildings.

Voting will be from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Ellenville High School Media Center at 28 Maple Ave.

Officials said they expect that 75 percent of the project will be covered by state aid and the local share will be financed by bonds that will replace expiring debt from a building project approved during the 1990s.

“We’ve had some issues with the steam (heating) system and some classrooms that have been flooded as a result of the failure,” district Superintendent Lisa Wiles said. “We’re piecing it together all the time. On top of all of that, it’s inefficient ... to heat an elementary school with steam, so we want to change it over to a hot water system.”

Officials expect the change will reduce energy costs by 25 to 30 percent in the elementary school.

“There are not a lot of bells and whistles, but it’s really just a lot of renovation to ... deal with things that will cost us a lot more if we don’t address them,” Wiles said.

She said the roofs are no longer under warranty, and their continual maintenance is a drain on the school district budget. “Other work in this (project) includes making safety and efficiency improvements in the building,” she said, “and we’ll be looking to put in a new fire alarm system, replace asbestos tiles, make safety upgrades to the auditorium and install several new windows and doors.”

Wiles said the project consists of the highest priority items needed by the district, but that officials wanted to avoid putting a burden on taxpayers.

“If we have to fund these projects through the operating budget, it would have a deeper impact on programs,” she said. “There’s a Rutgers report out there that lists the Ellenville school district as the eighth most-underfunded school district in New York state. What makes this (capital project) attractive is that there is aid we haven’t used yet. It’s about $1.3 million, in addition to the 55 to 56 percent building aid that we’re going to receive.”

Officials said the projects would be planned for two summer construction seasons beginning in 2016.