An indoor pool, a new turf field and bleachers, an indoor athletic facility with an auxiliary gym, lights for football and tennis — East Hampton High School could see all of these upgrades if three bond propositions pass in May. On Dec. 17, the school board unanimously approved putting three sets of capital construction projects on the ballot for voters to decide which upgrades, if any, they’d like to see.
At a fourth and final community forum on the capital improvement project, Sam Schneider, the district’s assistant superintendent for business, presented the results of a 2026 bond priorities survey that the district circulated as part of its community outreach on the bonds. In an attempt to get an accurate cross-section of the voting population, 41.9 percent of the survey respondents were residents without students in the school district, while the remaining 58.1 percent have at least one child attending one of the district’s three schools. The survey asked participants to rate whether they were opposed, neutral, or in favor of ideas that had been floated as potential projects at East Hampton High School, East Hampton Middle School, or the John M. Marshall Elementary School that could be included in the bond proposal in May. The board also met with the Parent Teacher Association.
“The most popular item was the mechanical HVAC system [at the high school],” Mr. Schneider said, chuckling. “And the field lights at the high school. One outlier — there is no appetite for a new turf field at John Marshall.”
The most popular item at John Marshall is a new life skills classroom, followed by a new multipurpose classroom. The most popular upgrade at the middle school was also a new life skills classroom, followed by science lab and auditorium renovations. While mechanical HVAC improvements and field lights led the way at the high school, a pool for community and student life and an indoor athletic facility weren’t far behind in popularity. Because they are such enormous projects, they’ll be bond proposition two and three, which can only be approved if the first bond proposition passes.
Proposition one includes $63.9 million in upgrades to all three schools. If it passes, proposition one will be paid for with $64 million in new debt issued between 2028 and 2030. That debt repayment schedule is essentially equal to debt that’s expiring and is expected to have no impact on taxpayers. “The goal is to replace that debt with zero to no tax impact,” said Adam Fine, the district’s superintendent. “The community wants a pool and an auxiliary gym with a basketball court and turf. Those would raise taxes. We’ll let the community decide. Could the district live without them? Sure. Are we advocating for them? Yes. I know how important swimming is to this community.”
The improvements in proposition one include the “needs” of all three schools in the district and some additional “wants.” The high school’s needs list totals $20.96 million and includes $14 million for the auditorium, a $3.82 million roof, outdoor bathrooms at a cost of $1.4 million, $1 million in security upgrades, $540,000 in track resurfacing, and a $200,000 concession trailer. The high school “wants” list totals $13.9 million and includes $3.86 million in mechanical upgrades, a $2.43 million cosmetology lab, $2.3 million for a turf field and bleachers, $1.8 million tennis courts, a $1.5 million jogging track around the property, $1.38 million for stadium lights, $408,000 baseball bleachers, $180,000 for new scoreboards, and a $50,000 pollinator garden.
Students from the high school attended the Dec. 17 forum to express their support for several of the projects, including the garden. Griffin Beckmann, a senior, said the pollinator garden would be a nice complement to the Garden Club of East Hampton. Another senior, Maya Tavares, backed several of the projects.
“As a three-sport athlete, I really appreciate the athletic advancements,” Maya said. “Apart from the sports, I think it’s important to acknowledge all of the other interests of the community because it’s really diverse. Cosmetology for the incoming middle school students is really important because the BOCES program is really far away. I’ve played the flute since fourth grade and while I don’t know a lot about the sound system [in the auditorium], I think advancements would be great. We have a lot of talent coming up to the high school. I think the diversity of this list is really great and I support it.”
The middle school list of needs totals nearly $9.14 million and includes $3.94 million worth of new windows, $1.68 million in mechanical repairs, $1.08 million in air-conditioning systems, $1 million in security upgrades, a $583,800 roof, $420,000 in masonry, $342,000 for a new fire escape enclosure, and $95,000 for stairway glass. The middle school wants list is valued at $6.45 million, and covers $5 million for the auditorium, a $516,000 life skills classroom, a $510,000 science lab, and a $420,000 English as a new language classroom.
The elementary school has $8.5 million worth of needs. Hallway flooring is the biggest ticket item at $1.87 million, followed by $1.77 million for a new roof, $1.67 million in upper window panels for the gym, $1 million for classroom bathrooms, $1 million in security upgrades, $800,000 in mechanical repairs, a $250,000 sound system for the gym (which also serves as the auditorium), and $150,000 in masonry repairs. The wants list has four items worth just over $5 million: $4.5 million worth of new multipurpose classrooms that include music and sensory needs, a new $300,000 gym floor, a $125,000 kitchen, and an $80,000 gym stage.
Proposition two is $43.68 million for the new indoor pool building. It would cost the average taxpayer $194.37 a year. That does not include $500,000 to $750,000 in operational costs, for staffing, maintenance, and insurance. The district would include those costs in its annual budget, once the building is complete.
The pool would include diving and bleachers so East Hampton would be able to host the Suffolk County swimming championships. There would also be office space for a pool maintenance program so that interested students could learn the trade. There would be separate locker rooms for students and community members so that the public could benefit from the new facility without giving the community access to the school. In defense of the new pool, Superintendent Fine expressed concerns about the future operability of the Y.M.C.A. East Hampton RECenter pool — which does not have permanent bleachers or diving boards. Mr. Fine said he doesn’t want to wait for the town or village to address those issues and wants to preserve the future of East Hampton swimming.
Proposition three is $18.54 million for the indoor athletic facility, which will cost the average taxpayer $82.53 per year. Of the taxpayers surveyed about the upcoming bond project, 56.8 percent said they were interested in the new pool building and indoor athletic facility.
Izzy Briand, a senior who has already committed to Dominican University to play softball next year, asked if the district would consider hiring local workers on these projects, to bring an additional economic boost to the community.
“We’d love to hire local contractors, but a lot of locals don’t have the level of additional insurance required,” Mr. Schneider said, adding that the school isn’t allowed to pay deposits upfront. “A lot of local businesses can’t do that. There’s a small number of firms that do municipal work. We typically see the same five firms on every bid.”
There are still several steps that have to happen before the bond vote on May 19. On Jan. 20, the school board will see the final project presentation. Feb. 2 will be the last opportunity for the board to make any adjustments to the projects. March 3 is the deadline for the board to adopt State Environmental Quality Review Act and ballot proposition language. J.P. Foster, the board president, said the board will welcome additional community participation along the way. “Whether you’re for or against, we’ll take any input we can get.”
Meanwhile, the superintendent assured the students that all of their suggestions would be taken into account. “All input will come into play,” Mr. Fine said. “You didn’t speak today for no reason.”