Middle Gate Water Line Revived––

Finance Board Sets Priorities

For Capital Projects

By Jan Howard

The Board of Finance has set priorities for proposed projects in the five-year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) for the years 2004–05 to 2008–09. As part of that process, the board voted unanimously during its meeting November 20 to include an approximately $500,000 water line extension for Middle Gate School in fiscal year 2004–05 and to rate it as the highest priority.

Funding was also added for open space acquisition over the next five years. Funding was reduced for a proposed high school academy building and police building improvements and renovations.

While the board voted to approve each year’s proposed projects separately, there was no vote on the final bottom line of $53,704,000 for the five years.

“We’re in the position of making difficult decisions,” Board of Finance Chairman John Kortze said this week. “It’s hard to endeavor to plan these things out when you’re reluctant to trust the numbers you’re given. Our job is not to determine need.

“We have to choose to say no or come up with alternatives,” he said. Regarding the proposed capital improvement projects, he added, “We may not be able to do them all.”

He noted his frustrations about information provided to his board during the process by the Board of Education. “We can’t make educated decisions with bogus information. We have valid questions, and they can’t get defensive,” he said.

Board members attending last week’s Board of Finance meeting did not make any comments regarding the need for the water line extension, relying on Superintendent of Schools Dr Evan Pitkoff and Ron Bienkowski, the school system’s financial director, to provide information.

“How can we talk about millions of dollars and get no comment from the Board of Education,” he said.

The water line extension, originally proposed for the CIP for the 2005–06 fiscal year, became an issue recently because of continuing water problems at the school and the need to repair or replace parts of the current water system. The Legislative Council recently voted 10-0 to reject the proposal, which the Board of Finance had previously approved in a 3-2 vote, with one member absent.

Dr Pitkoff and Mr Bienkowski discussed the priority listing for the water line extension as well as the high school academy, which is proposed for the 2006–07 fiscal year.

Dr Pitkoff said the water line project ultimately should be done. “I’d like to put it back into the plan to take advantage of a low interest state loan,” he said.

When asked what priority the water line should be given, Mr Bienkowski said, “I’d rank it number 1.”

Mr Bienkowski said that when the Legislative Council rejected the request to borrow $500,000 for the project, the state Bonding Commission pulled it from their December meeting agenda. Legislative Council approval would be needed for reconsideration.

Discussion about the water line extension turned testy when board members and First Selectman Herb Rosenthal questioned why bottled water was not being provided at the school on a continuing basis if the well water problem was so critical an issue that it was bumped up from the 2005–06 fiscal year to this year.

Dominick Posca, the school system’s buildings and grounds supervisor, said it has been eight months since the water was last contaminated by fecal coliform. He explained that testing is completed monthly. If the water is clear, the school goes back to using the wells, but coliform could recur at any time. He said he would not know until another test whether coliform was again present in the water.

Mr Bienkowski said though there has been no recent problem, “You don’t know when you would have another incident.” He said the state views bottled water as a short-term solution.

Board of Finance member Jim Gaston said he felt the water line extension should be done promptly. “There is merit to the argument to get funding.” He noted, however, bottled water should be provided to the school until a permanent solution to the water problem is in effect.

Mr Rosenthal said that if the situation was that critical a concern, “It is beyond belief why there isn’t bottled water there every day. Either it’s a critical health issue or it isn’t. People should not have to worry about their children drinking water.”

Following a discussion as to whether the Board of Finance should send its approval of the project back to the Legislative Council, Mr Kortze suggested a stronger message would be to include the project in its 2004–05 fiscal year CIP with a higher priority.

Mr Kortze, playing “devil’s advocate,” said that it was important to remember the numbers evolved during discussions regarding the water line extension and that there were letters from the town and state that the condition was not critical at that juncture.

It was recommended that the Board of Education should ask the Legislative Council to reconsider the project.

During voter participation at the beginning of the meeting, Peter Vodola, a parent, encouraged the board to send the project back to the Legislative Council because there was information it did not have at the time it voted to reject the project. PTO President Amy Cameron agreed, noting the Legislative Council did not know the urgency of the issue. She said the water issue is “a scary situation for parents.”

Capital Improvement Plan

Following discussion, it was determined that, while some board members were not comfortable with the $23 to $25 million estimated cost for the high school academy, some money would need to remain in the CIP to study the school issue. Mr Kortze said the original $17 million came about as a result of a TBD (To Be Determined) cost estimate by the Board of Education in its initial CIP request.

Mr Spragg, Mr Kortze said, after a couple of meetings inserted $17 million “as a matter of reference.”

“I’m very concerned about putting $25 million in the CIP,” Mr Gaston said. “I don’t support that.” He noted, however, that some funding should be included because there is support for the project.

It was decided to include $10 million for the proposed school at the present time until other alternatives are explored.

The Board of Finance, while retaining $200,000 for a proposed building improvements design for the police in 2005–06, decided to cut to $1 million the proposed funding in 2006–07 for building improvements and renovations.

While some members would have eliminated the police proposal entirely because they feel there is no support for the project, others urged that a more realistic number should be included.

The board also added $1 million a year for the next five years for open space acquisition.

Mr Gaston noted that because a project is part of the CIP, “It doesn’t mean it will make it that year.” He noted the ten percent debt to expenditures ratio would not be exceeded. Represented by a red line on the graph, he added, “The red line is a cap, not a guideline.”

Mr Kortze said he was in favor of leaving all projects in the CIP, leaving it to town officials who proposed the projects to make the cuts.

Michael Portnoy stated, however, “We have a responsibility to put in the numbers under the red line. We need to tell the Board of Ed and the town they need to do something other than what was submitted.”

The CIP projects for the next five years, listed according to priority, are:

2004–05: Middle Gate waterline, $516,000; capital road project, $2 million; revaluation, $225,000; Sandy Hook Center streetscape, $200,000; pumper truck (Botsford), $385,000; Head O’ Meadow heating and ventilating, $4 million; Hawley School heating and ventilating, $290,000; open space, $1 million; grader replacement, $250,000; high school auditorium repairs, $208,000; Parks and Recreation (P&R) maintenance facility design/renovations, $200,000; Commerce Technology Park, $1 million. Total, $10,274,000.

2005–06: Capital road project, $2 million; revaluation, $225,000; Sandy Hook Center streetscape, $200,000; pumper truck (Newtown Hook and Ladder), $395,000; Hawley School heating and ventilating, $3.32 million; open space, $1 million; high school auditorium repairs, $260,000; Commerce Technology Park, $1 million; P&R maintenance facility, $400,000; P&R pond renovations, Dickinson Park, $720,000; police, building improvements design, $200,000. Total, $9,720,000.

2006–07: Capital road project, $2 million; Sandy Hook Center streetscape, $75,000; high school academy renovation, $6.7 million and $3.3 million; open space, $1 million; Commerce Technology Park, $1.4 million; police, building improvements, renovations, $1 million; P&R recreation center (design), $200,000. Total, $15,675,000.

2007–08: Capital road project, $2 million; Sandy Hook Center streetscape, $155,000; middle school heating and ventilating, $300,000; open space, $1 million; Middle Gate window replacement, $208,000; middle school athletic field engineering, $112,000; high school athletic field house improvements, $520,000; school telephone system, $208,000; Commerce Technology Park, $1 million (Currituck/Obtuse/Route 25 intersection, $200,000; P&R recreation center, $2.4 million; P&R baseball/softball field lights, $300,000. Total, $8,403,000.

2008–09: Capital road project, $2 million; middle school heating and ventilating improvements, $3.43 million; open space, $1 million; middle school athletic field improvements, $1,232,000; Commerce Technology Park, $1 million; Sandy Hook Streetscape, $620,000; P&R, pool dome, Treadwell Park, $350,000. Total, $9,632,000.