by David Flint
With talks continuing between the Berlin School Board and the Town of Stephentown about what to do with the now empty Stephentown Elementary School and its grounds, the Town is now ready to commit to at least covering the costs of mowing and plowing. At a meeting last week attended by nine people including representatives of the School District, the Town Board, the library and interested residents, Town Board members Larry Eckhardt and PJ Roder said they could come up with about $3,000 from a contingency fund to keep the fields mowed and the parking areas free of snow. The School District would continue to contract out these services, but the Town would pick up the tab. Eckhardt and Roder emphasized that they believe people in the Town want to retain use of the playground and the outdoor basketball court. However, in such a tight budget year the Town Board is having to make cuts in a number of areas, and there is no money to commit to taking on the costs of maintaining or renovating the school building itself. In any case, any more extensive commitment would require more input from Town residents including public hearings and probably a referendum.
BCS Buildings & Grounds Superintendent Cyril Grant presented a table showing average annual operational costs for the school and grounds to be $46,145. School Board President Frank Zwack noted that the heating fuel and electricity costs were based on full operation of the school, and he estimated they might be $10,000 less for a building not occupied full time.
Grant also presented an example of a five-year plan for the Town to assume operation and maintenance costs for the school and grounds. The plan, which did not include any renovation or lease or purchase costs that might be negotiated, would have the Town paying 30% in year one, 40% in years two and three and 50% in years four and five. Thus, depending on the actual costs for electricity and fuel, the Town might be paying out between eleven and fourteen thousand the first year and between eighteen and twenty-three thousand in years four and five. The Town would purchase or take on a full lease of the building and grounds in year six and would assume full operational costs. Roder noted that $10,000 is equal to one percent of the Town’s tax levy.
Eckhardt and Roder indicated that the Town was in somewhat of a quandary here. On the one hand, people are wary of taking on the burden of putting a lot of money into renovating and bringing up to code an old building that dates back to 1948. They noted, too, that there is insufficient parking for some of the uses that have been suggested, and they pointed out that the townspeople currently have the use of a Town Hall, a Firehall and an expanded library.
On the other hand, they don’t want to lose the use of the playground, the fields and the outdoor basketball court, and they would like to retain use of the building for the Youth Commission’s summer program. Eckhardt said that the winter basketball program has been cancelled for this year so there is no need this winter for the school gymnasium, but they hope to get it started up again in the following year.
If the Town were to take over the property, they said that one option that has been discussed, in order to avoid high renovation costs and provide more parking, is to demolish the building and put up a pavilion or a smaller building.
There appeared to be some consensus that the Town needs to be guided in its decision making by a Comprehensive or Master Plan. Interim Schools Superintendent Charlotte Gregory said her experience has been that towns with a comprehensive plan have been better able to draw in business. Roder said a committee had been started for developing such a plan but it needed to be re-energized. He agreed that a ten-year plan was needed. Eckhardt thought that the townspeople might support purchasing the school property for a Town park and that the Town could plan to put up a new building some five or ten years down the road. Gregory did not know what the purchase price might be but said she could talk to the School Board about getting a commercial appraisal.
In the meantime, the School will explore leasing out parts of the building for an arts program, a teen center or other uses. Zwack said they would work out what it would cost to rent a room for maybe a ten-week period. Sue Cass noted that there is money at the county level to support a teen center. Fidel Moreno said his wife Susan Jamieson might be interested in holding dance classes there and that Williams College and Bennington College are looking for a site in this area for a Young Scholars Program, a six-week summer residential program for high achieving third, fourth and fifth grade students. Roder and Eckhardt said they would talk to the Stephentown Seniors and the Karate Club about moving their meetings to the school building. Zwack thought that would be a good start and would result in having lights on in the building occasionally so it doesn’t appear abandoned.