The WW-P school board’s unanimous approval of an amendment to its agreement with a nonprofit group to install lights at the high school athletic fields has reignited opposition from neighbors.
The amendment, approved on the same day as the annual school elections, allows the South Booster Club to install the lights at the first field, which is anticipated to be at High School South, before sufficient funding has been raised for lights at North.
Residents near both schools have been opposed to the idea of installing lights since the board began looking at the matter last year. They cited concerns for decreased safety and quality of life in their neighborhoods as a result of the people brought into the neighborhoods for night games.
Now, as the amendment was approved, the matter was even cited as a reason one resident voted against the budget (see story page 1).
Canoe Brook Drive resident Sara Spangler Campanella told the board on April 27, prior to the vote, that she had been supportive of the budget up until earlier this month, “when it became apparent that this district is willing to set a precedent allowing a group to move forward with a project that is not fully funded, which is both imprudent financially” and poor board policy, she said.
She said the school officials were sending the wrong message to students, including that “some people don’t matter,” that it could get rid of its custodial staff to save money through privatization, and that it can cut other programs for students, while at the same time, risking taxpayer money on a project that wasn’t fully funded.
“I am now convinced the district’s priorities are no longer what they once were or should be, and I cannot support it,” said Campanella. “So, for the first time in my adult life, coming from a family that considers it a crime to vote against the school budget, I have voted against the school budget.”
She said her comments are not frivolous. “I watched over the past two years and decided that I can no longer support these decisions that are teaching our children all the wrong things, and I would rather the school budget go down for one year with the town council review and short-term pain, than to continue to be part of what I feel is the long-term erosion” of the district’s values, she said.
Genevieve Stiefel of Nassau Place added that “this is a quiet, safe neighborhood. Now, thanks to your plan to have lights installed on the football field at High School South, our neighborhood safety and quiet will be destroyed by the lights and the noise.”
She said the situation is made worse by the district’s decision to allow the lights “to be installed at High School South when only half of the funding is raised. Do you really think the community should trust and support you when you only represent your own interests and goals of a certain group?”
Board members, however, reiterated that the amendment to the agreement would not allow taxpayer money to be used to fund the project.
“The memorandum of agreement specifically states that the Booster Club is allowed to take out loans” for the project, said board member Todd Hochman. “The money has to be in place to purchase the lights. It can be in the form of a full loan.”
The district would not be part of that loan and will not be responsible for any funding necessary, he added.
Another question raised by the public was whether the district would be responsible for funding the installation of lights at the second field if the first installation took place and insufficient funds were raised for the next phase. “I want to make my position perfectly clear that I would not vote for that,” said Hochman. “I would never vote to spend taxpayer money for light installation, period.”
Board member Robert Johnson said he lives near the neighborhood on Van Wyck Drive and can hear the games from his yard. “I will admit I have contributed money to the effort, and I support the effort, and I would not if I thought it would lead to unsafe or raucous conditions in the neighborhood,” he said. “I don’t think the use is going to be a nuisance to the neighborhood. If I did, I wouldn’t have voted for it. I believe that existing policies are adequate in controlling it.”
He said the board has committed to the fact that it will not spend money on the installation of the lights. “If the lights can’t be self-sustained, then they won’t be used,” he said. “As far as whether they’re done in parallel or in sequence, that was a tough decision. I was initially not in favor of this amendment. I felt that they really had to have the funds for both before we started either. But I thought it through, and I talked to the people who I trust who are behind this, and that is a big factor in supporting the lights. It is the trustworthiness and the public reputation and the public standing of the people who are behind this.”
Board President Hemant Marathe said rumors that the lights at South will be installed when only half of the funding is raised are untrue. Full funding will be required before those lights are installed. He also addressed the issue some residents have raised about equity between the two schools, and whether it would be unfair to North if funding fell through, and only South got the lights.
“Is it better to have it at one than not to have it at all?” he said. “If someone comes to bring $50,000 for the science lab at one high school, should I turn it down because it is not available for the other high school? I won’t. It’s the same logic here. If it happens only at one school, it happens at one school.”
Campanella said she understands the board has said it will not use taxpayer money on installation. “But you cannot bind future boards,” who may decide to use taxpayer money to finish the project.
In addition, “while I understand that you made the decision based on the reputations of some of these individuals in the community, that’s not really good board policy to do,” she said.
In December the board approved a memorandum of understanding to allow the club to preside over the process for installing athletic field lights at both schools.
The MOU grants the Booster Club the permission to install the lights in 2012. The agreement protects the school district against any charges — even for utility costs — with regard to use of the lights.
