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 WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. By John F. Bailey. October 18, 2006: The School District Referendum result passes with a simple majority of 53%, according to Superintendent of Schools Timothy Connors in an interview with The CitizeNetReporter early this afternoon. According to Assistant Superintendent for Business, Fred Seiler, the district can borrow up to $356 Million before the 5% rule referred to in the New York State Constitution affects the amount the district wishes to borrow..

A source had alerted WPCNR to the statute (see early story), and WPCNR had asked Superintendent of Schools earlier today why the 60% majority did not apply.

Connors said today with Mr. Seiler in a conference call with WPCNR, “It’s really clear there’s a 5% rule on what you’re allowed to borrow, and we’re far below that. (The amount, $66.6 Million), we’re about one and a half percent. Because we’re below the dollar amount, we’re not required to have the super majority, we simply have to have a simple majority.”

The vote yesterday found 1,032 voting for the $69.6 Million Referendum, and 926 voting against, a margin of 53% to 47%.

Assistant Superintendent for Business Fred Seiler explains that school districts would be subject to a 60% super majority for approval if they wanted to borrow more than their debt limit:  “For city school districts, it (the debt limit) is restricted to 5%. If a district were to exceed their 5% debt limit, they would need to have a 60% plurality on their vote. In White Plains, we’ve just done the numbers for our district, the equalization of the full valuation of our property comes to a little more than $7 Billion dollars. So our 5% debt limit would be $356 Million.

When we take into account our current debt plus the proposed debt for this new project, we come to $108 Million. We’re well below the $356 Million that is permissible to us under that 5% debt limit.”

Connors told WPCNR, that though the district is able to borrow $356 Million, it was only goin to borrow “what we need and manage it well.”

WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. By John F. Bailey. October 17, 2006: In discussing the steps to take on the financing of the $66 Million dollars worth of bond issues to be floated to finance the $69.6 Million Capital Project approved by voters Tuesday, Fred Seiler, Assistant Superintendent for Business said the district would offer the first of free bond issues to the financial community next June:

Seiler said: “You have a process now where we begin to do a lot of the design work and prepare the documents that go to the State Department of Education for approval. Once they approve it, we begin to prepare to go out to bid. Once the bids come back, we need to begin to arrange for the financing to actually pay those contractors. We’re hopefully since we expect work to start next summer, we’ll probably be doing our bonding in June of 07 at the latest.”

The as the apparent, at this time approval of the referendum became at the time conclusive. Standing, left to right Superintendent Connors, Nicholas Andreadis, Triton Construction, Eric Kaeyer, Kaeyer Garment & Davidson, Amy Geiger, Michele Schoenfeld, Mike Lynch, Administrator of Facilities and Operations, Fred Seiler, Assistant Superintendent for Business.  Photo WPCNR News

Seiler confirmed that payment on the principle and debt service of the first wave of bonds would be in the next school budget, 2007-2008. “It would phase in over three years, because we’re looking to do three bondings for about 1/3 each of the full project there ($22 Million each, state aid and a $1 Million gift make up the rest of the $69.6 Million project cost).”

Asked how much principle and debt service on the bond would decrease for the tax payer beginning in the 2010-2011 budget year, Seiler said, “It’s a small amount each year. It’s a fairly flat. Think of it like a mortgage schedule.”

Eric Kaeyer, principal of Kaeyer, Garment and Davidson, the architects, asked what is next said,  “We start working with the district in terms of the plans.”

Asked what that would consist of, Kaeyer said:   “We go through the entire program. We’ll probably have a Building Committee, and we’ll meet with the users (schools affected), obviously the principals and the people who are going to be using that Post Road School, as well as the other facilities. We’re going to put together the schedule and we’ll start our work. We’re looking forward to it.”

Michael Lynch, Mr. Kaeyer and Nicholas Andreadis, the CEO of Triton Construction were already discussing possibilities of the two stadium constructions as the happy occasion broke up. Lynch said it was up to the architects and the construction manager, Andreakis how work would proceed on the stadiums.

Kaeyer said the Post Road School would take a year as far as design and approvals and “we should be looking at this time next year starting the construction process.”

Kaeyer said Kaeyer Garment & Davidson would sit down with the district and put together a plan on how the meetings with the schools involved, to receive their input on the design