Ossining budget includes $ for window air-conditioning units to cool classrooms lacking central HVAC

District buildings-and-grounds staff told the board on March 15 that the superintendent's proposed 2025'26 budget includes a sizable equipment line to buy and install commercial-grade window air conditioners in classrooms that currently lack central HVAC or are not scheduled to receive it under the district's pending capital projects.

Jared, who presented facilities pages at the workshop, said the request targets instructional spaces that are not already covered by ongoing or planned capital HVAC upgrades: "The goal is to get to all the instructional spaces that do not have air conditioning," he said. He listed an initial estimate of classrooms in need: 45 at the high school, 27 at Park and additional classrooms at Claremont and Brookside; Roosevelt and other sections already addressed were excluded from that count.

The plan calls for the district to purchase commercial-grade window units, replace a window sash with an insulated mounting panel, and run a dedicated electrical circuit to each unit. Facilities staff also stressed electrical upgrades needed to support the equipment, noting prior work on service panels to expand capacity. Jared said the estimate uses historical pricing and that the final total will be determined through bidding. He cautioned that cost escalation could increase final costs.

Board members pressed staff to confirm the districts would not duplicate capital HVAC work already in planning. Facilities staff said they would not install window units in spaces covered by planned capital work (for example, AMD is in a capital project plan and would not receive window units). The administration characterized the purchases as equipment (operating budget) rather than capital because the units are not intended to be permanent building HVAC replacements.

Administration and board members framed the plan as a multi-year effort that pairs capital investment for long-term HVAC with operating purchases to protect classrooms in the near term. The board asked for a bid process and for the administration to clarify a campus-by-campus breakdown and the percentage of instructional spaces that would be served by the current ask.

Staff said they will return with bid totals and clarified that the budget request is intended to be as non-duplicative as possible with capital HVAC projects already on the district's plan.