N. Merrick plans capital improvements bond

The North Merrick School District Board of Education is considering borrowing $15.75 million to overhaul aging infrastructure at the district’s three schools: Camp Avenue, Fayette and Old Mill Road. The board is set to vote Feb. 10 to place a bond referendum on the May school ballot.

In two board meetings this month, district administrators characterized infrastructure upgrades as necessary.

“These are projects that … have been identified in our long-term facilities plan, and they are big-ticket items, which routinely can’t be included in a budget,” said Superintendent David Feller.

The board discussed the run-down state of district infrastructure and the need for a bond sale to fund repairs in 2013 meetings. But that fall the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District announced its own capital improvements bond, and North Merrick shelved its plans.

The North Merrick board now appears ready to move forward. In a Jan. 6 work session, trustees reached a tentative and informal agreement on what buildings and grounds improvements to include in a bond, and at the board’s Jan. 13 meeting, James Saitta, the district’s director of facilities, gave a slide-show presentation outlining the proposal.

Saitta said the bond would cover:

•Replacing boilers and heating equipment district-wide.
•Replacing all exterior windows at Fayette and Old Mill Road.
•Removing asbestos floor tiles district-wide.
•Repairing masonry and lintels, or supports over windows and doors, district-wide.
•Replacing some exterior doors and other security enhancements.
•Replacing Camp Avenue’s hot-water system.
•Installing air-conditioning in one central gathering room per school, which would serve as a cooling center on very hot days.
•Repaving the Old Mill Road bus loop.
•Repaving concrete on Fayette’s south side.