OPINION: In Favor of Ossining's School Bond

To the Editor:

As an Ossining parent, community member and business owner I have an appreciation for investing on our assets to maintain solid quality schools and community value.  After analyzing this proposed bond and knowing what conditions the schools are in I  believe this is a “must pass” bond proposal in order to save money, not increase taxes and most of all preserve our community assets.  As a west end of New Castle resident, I am fully concerned with any proposals that would increase my taxes any more.

This proposal is a “no frills”, overdue investment in our aging buildings.  The boilers are old and inefficient costing taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.  With the replacement of these boilers, Ossining will see a cost savings north of $180,000 per year going forward.  Furthermore, leaking roofs, a cracked exterior wall and other repairs that can no longer be patched need to be addressed.  Also, we have class sizes expanding and we are running out of room to educate our children and this proposal will address this issue. 
 
Investing in our school assets is at the heart of preserving our community’s legacy for solid quality schools and encouraging young families to move into Ossining.  I am strongly in favor of this responsible bond and ask the community to join me on Tuesday, March 6th at the to vote YES.
 
Michel Gunn
Ossining, NY 10562