Parent urges Three Village district to approve bond to fix aging school buildings

An unidentified parent and district resident urged voters to back a bond to address aging infrastructure in the Three Village Central School District, saying the district’s historic school buildings are in need of replacement work to keep students comfortable and safe.

"I love this district," the speaker said, adding that the buildings "are beautiful historic buildings" but "they are getting older, and they creak and they ache and they need attention." The speaker listed practical needs including "boilers and ceiling tiles and lights and heat... heating systems," and said those items are "very, very necessary so that our kids can come to school and sit at their desk and feel comfortable."

The parent argued the district should bundle the most pressing projects into a single bond measure so work can be completed more quickly rather than spreading repairs across multiple budgets. "By kind of taking all of the most pressing items, piling them together, and going out for a bond, we have a chance of getting all this done in a much shorter order," the speaker said, adding that "most of the work" would be scheduled "over the summers."

On financing, the speaker said the bond’s 15-year repayment schedule made the plan fair to both current and future homeowners: "if you live here for 3 more years or you live here for 15 years, you're gonna pay your portion. If you move out after 3 years, the person who buys your house pays the rest of it as opposed to it being included in an annual budget." The speaker also acknowledged the community’s financial strain, saying officials are "very sensitive to the burden that our community is bearing right now" but argued that proactive investment can avoid more costly emergencies later.

The parent referenced recent serious facility problems in the district — "we've had a couple of doozies over the last few years" such as floods or roofs failing — as further justification for acting before a crisis. The remarks in the provided transcript are a public appeal and do not show any immediate board response, motion or recorded vote on the bond.

The comment concluded with a closing plea to preserve safe, healthy learning spaces so students can "keep learning and thriving in a really beautiful, healthy space." No formal next steps or meeting actions on the bond were recorded in the supplied transcript.