Long Range Planning Saves Money

To the Editor:

If we don’t preserve Fairfield Hills for school and municipal needs, ten or 20 years from now we may find no land available. We may need a paid fire department, additional police space, a medical facility, or even a helicopter landing pad for emergency evacuations. Even with the suggested high school addition, future school space requirements may exceed the current capacity of the present 49-acre high school site. Prudent long-range planning would designate 80–90 FFH acres for a future high school and the remaining 100 acres for municipal services, recreation, and open space. Economic development belongs in the 38 acre Commerce Park area.

FFH is the perfect location to save money because it can provide sewers, water, flat land, and a road system to handle the traffic. The state reimburses the town for about one-third of school construction costs; therefore, incorporate as many identified community needs as possible into a school construction project and save.

One Plan: 1. Begin the planning by retaining a landscape architect to designate locations for a new high school, municipal facilities, and necessary road system on the 180 acres of FFH.

2. Renovate one or two existing buildings at FFH to accommodate a 300–400-pupil specialized school (i.e., foreign language immersion program, the arts, or science and technology) as the first phase of a new high school — the “close-by but separate” idea. Make the program so enticing that students will clamor to attend. (Savings $2 million — two buildings).

3. Playing fields and parking lots, also reimbursable. (Savings $300,000 for seven fields)

4. Show future construction of additional “wings” attached to the renovated buildings to increase capacity to 1,900–2,000 pupils.

5. Include the indoor swimming facility (replaces Dickinson Park pool; savings $2 million).

6. Gymnasium as proposed by the Park and Recreation Department gymnasium/recreation center ($1 million if limited to $3 million — Capital Improvement Plan 2002)

7. An auditorium-cultural arts center.

When financially feasible, adding these additional facilities to complete a 1,900-student capacity high school will make it possible to move the sixth, seventh, and eighth grades to the present high school. Then convert the middle school into town offices and utilize the unused portions for an expanded Senior Center. Savings: $8 million for a new town hall (FFH bond issue) and the estimated $18 million for renovation of the middle school cafeteria and auditorium (CIP), and the cost of a storage space addition at the Senior Center. Finally, forget mothballing four buildings at FFH, speculating that lease tenants can be found (save $750,000). Total Savings: $22 million or more.

Other results: Removes school bus and parent pick-up traffic from Queen Street area, improves access to retail center, keeps town government in center of town, addresses the needs of a growing senior population. Avoids portable classrooms or double sessions at the high school.

Let’ get going!

Ruby Johnson

16 Chestnut Hill Road, Sandy Hook                      November 9, 2005