Middle School Needs Seats

Sooner Rather Than Later

To the Editor:

Dr Pitkoff and Principal Diane Sherlock made the right decision to stop the “Musical Chairs” at the middle school auditorium where all fall down.  The seating at the auditorium has been a safety hazard, financial liability, and embarrassment to Newtown residents for years.

I attended the Board of Education at the Reed Intermediate School on Tuesday evening. It was a consensus that the middle school has a problem. Principal Sherlock announced that the grass roots effort initiated last November to replace the 40-year-old seats has resulted in approximately $11,000 in contributions, well short of the $80,000 goal.

It was presented to the board and confirmed by the Director of Business Ron Bienkowski that there has been a significant savings with the Board of Education heating oil budget ($690,000) due to the warmer winter that we have experienced this heating season. Director of Business Bienkowski confirmed and acknowledged that the figure was approximately $100,000.

Board member Paul Mangiafico made a motion to transfer $100,000 and earmark the money for the new seating. The board had the opportunity to pull the trigger and approve the requested $100,000 for the new auditorium seats since the funding is available; his motion failed 5 to 1.The board did approve a motion for an engineering study and bid request. 

Let’s fast-track this project and talk with our neighbors that have already done their homework; Oxford is building is a new high school, Bethel is renovating their high school, Weston has a new intermediate school, Amity High School is nearing completion on a new auditorium. Our problem is not unique nor is the solution. Expedite and narrow the bid process using local references offering a competitively priced product. Today’s seventh graders deserve to have an open auditorium when school reopens in August.

Paul Mangiafico demonstrated a sense of urgency to move this along expeditiously; he questioned timelines, manufacturers, and available options. Ron Bienkowski was also very helpful in presenting alternatives to the bid process, potential issues with ADA compliancy and offering suggestions to streamline the process. Unfortunately other Board of Education members did not share in Paul’s conviction.

One board member felt that a completion date in either September or October was acceptable “if we can save the taxpayers some money” and “there are no school productions early in the school year.” An auditorium is an integral part of the school. Students prior to the start of school also use the auditorium as a waiting area. Mr Gissen, if your oil burner breaks down tonight, you either fix or replace the burner immediately. Procrastination is not an answer.

Chris Carney

28 Mountain Laurel Lane, Sandy Hook                  February 7, 2007