Schools

Bedford Schools Fix Recommendations Could Come by Spring

Administration will take a position on what they would advise the board to look at for major construction projects.

Bedford Central school administrators could present a recommendations for its capital plan to the school board by early spring, according to Superintendent Jere Hochman.

Beginning in January, however, officials will get an engineering review done for construction projects considered, such as whether to back a major renovation for West Patent Elementary school. There will then be a meeting of officials with the district's capital committee to present a working draft of the plan and get feedback from its members. The recommendations for what to have in a capital plan will be presented to the school board after getting feedback from that committee.

In presenting recommendations, there will be a change of thinking from administrators, in that they will take positions on the major projects.

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“There will be a shift in thinking, though," Hochman told the school board at its Wednesday meeting. "We have tried to say as neutral as possible in this process.”

The examination for the start of 2012 marks the beginning of a new phase. In June, the original recommendations, totaling more than $60 million, . They included major renovations to West Patent, the addition of cafeteria space and a science lab renovation at Fox Lane Middle School, and a series of major infrastructural improvements for all of hte district's seven schools.

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Giving feedback during the fall, some board members expressed interest in looking at of West Patent, which was subsequently studied. An early study estimated that a replacement's cost would depend on the capacity for the building, with about $46 million for a building of similar student capacity. Going with this option would push the total project cost to about $80.96 million.

Public support, which the board has been seeking out, for the fixes. A recent survey done by Unicom-Arc shows a split between support for and opposition towards a $64 million bond scenario, which would include a renovation of West Patent. Support for a tear down and replacement poll low, with 68 percent prefering a renovation and just 14.4 percent in favor of a new building. However, the survey showed majority numbers for broader questions on maintaining the district's buildings and their value. Board members hope that they can educate voters and inform them about the connection between those values questions and what needs to be fixed.


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