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$40 Million School Construction Bond Vote Passes In Mount Pleasant

MOUNT PLEASANT, N.Y. -- Residents of the Mount Pleasant School District easily passed a $39.6 million construction bond issue on Tuesday, by a vote of 1,735 to 967.

The Westlake High School athletic field.

The Westlake High School athletic field.

Photo Credit: Flickr

Tuesday's vote took place in the Westlake High School gymnasium. 

Superintendent of Schools  Susan Guiney thanked voters in a letter to the school district and community, writing: "We appreciate your ongoing support of our schools as our district moves forward and addresses a number of facilities’ infrastructure and health and safety needs."

Approved projects include new ventilation in classrooms, replacing deteriorated doors at Westlake High School, upgrading restrooms and bringing them into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, repairing/replacing roofs and fixing masonry.

"We also wish to extend a very heartfelt thank you to the members of our community, PTAs, the Westlake Athletic Association, the Mount Pleasant Education Foundation, the Mount Pleasant Teachers Association and parents, who went an extra mile to spread accurate information, promote the fine work of our schools, and encourage friends and neighbors to vote," Guiney said.

Guiney said the next step in the process will be for the district's architectural firm, H2M, to complete the final drawings and submit them to the state education department for approval. Once state approval is granted, the competitive bidding process will take place. 

"We look forward to beginning work on this long awaited project in the summer of 2017," Guiney said.

For homes with a market value of $500,000, the peak annual cost would average $343 starting in 2020 -- and then begin to decrease in 2025 when payments on prior debt start to decline.

State aid is expected to cover nearly 37 percent of project costs, school officials have said.

Guiney has called it a “no frills” bond because most of the upgrades would address health and safety issues at the Mount Pleasant district’s four school buildings. 

Two previous bond propositions failed in recent years, prompting Guiney to say: “Before anything happens and we’re in an emergency state, we need to address all of these issues.”

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