LAKE HUNTINGTON, NY — Voters in the Sullivan West Central School District will be asked to decide the fate of $3,308,419 worth of construction, repairs, and renovations in a referendum vote set for Tuesday, October 27.

A public hearing took place at the October 15 board meeting, attended by approximately 20 audience members.

Superintendent Dr. Nancy Hackett explained that $2,843,752 would come from the Capital Reserve Fund that district voters agreed to establish in 2008, supplemented by $464,667 in Excel Funds provided through the New York State Dormitory Authority.

Since funds for these restricted purposes are already allocated in the Capital Reserve account, approval of this appropriation would have no impact on the tax levy. A balance of $910,121 would remain in that reserve fund, which was authorized for a 10-year period.

The fund was previously tapped twice, first in October 2009 when the district spent $1.6 million to repair the slate roof at the historic Jeffersonville building, and then in October 2012 when District voters authorized $2.698 million for various repairs at both the elementary and high school campuses.

Dr. Hackett said that the current projects listed under a collective and sole “Proposition #1” derived from facility needs that were identified in the district’s five-year plan.

At the Sullivan West Elementary School in Jeffersonville, work would include:

Construct one baseball field, one softball field and one soccer field, including site amenities;

Re-construct the athletic track and improve site drainage at the field;

Renovate interior spaces and acquire equipment for a Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math (STEAM) lab;

Repair the clock tower, exterior stairs, windows and sidewalks;

Replace temperature controls;

Restore the brick building’s masonry as needed;

Replace the 1938 gymnasium windows; and

Install a backflow preventer for stormwater mitigation.

At the much newer Sullivan West High School in Lake Huntington, a STEAM lab is also proposed, along with replacing select flooring and repairing sidewalks as needed.

The allocation breakdown per campus, for which final figures depend on the amount of incoming bids for the jobs, is approximately $2.5 to $2.7 million for work at the elementary school and $500,000 at the high school.

Asked what will happen if voters withhold their authorization on Tuesday, Dr. Hackett said, “If it does go down, we will go back and revisit it. We have this funding. We are trying to spend it wisely.”

She added that these projects are considered priorities for the district, particularly those that address safety concerns.

Board member Rose Joyce-Turner suggested to Hackett that they post the district’s five-year plan on the website to provide context for voters.

“Show the breadth and scope of it. Lay it out clearly for our citizens so they can see the direction,” she said.

Polling places—which are located in Callicoon at the Delaware Youth Center, in Jeffersonville at the Sullivan West Elementary School and in Narrowsburg at the Tusten-Cochecton Library—will be open from noon to 9 p.m. on October 27.

Absentee ballot applications are available by contacting District Clerk Peg Luty at 845/482-4610, ext. 3000.

Other meeting highlights included:

• Dr. Hackett provided a 2014-2015 SWCS Academic Achievement report, offering data on math and English Language Arts (ELA) test scores for grades three to eight, Opt Out (test refusal) percentages (27% for ELA and 34% for math, compared to New York State figures of 26% ELA and 31% Math), High School Regents exam passing rates, college credit courses, Advanced Placement, ACT and SAT scores, and graduation statistics.

• Sullivan County Sheriff’s Deputy Jack Harb was introduced as the School Resource Officer for the elementary and high school, a new position established as a recommendation of the Safety Committee.

• The kick-off meeting of the Community Task Force, which will discuss strategies to combat substance abuse and other risky student behaviors, will be held Oct. 22 at 6:30 p.m. in the high school library. All are welcome.