Three is the magic number in the East Hampton School District next month. Taxpayers will see three bond propositions on the ballot on May 19, along with the annual school budget and the school board elections. Here’s a closer look at the trio of bonds and how they came to be.
It all started with debt. East Hampton School District has $64 million of debt set to expire in the coming years. It is common practice to replace expiring debt with new debt, to keep taxes steady while also keeping up with essential capital improvements.
“Could you let the debt retire? Certainly. Is it going to lower people’s taxes very much? The impact would be modest,” said Sam Schneider, the district’s assistant superintendent for business. “And while I certainly don’t want to devalue anybody’s tax bill, I would say that because we need to do things to maintain the integrity of these public buildings, this is a way that the community will continue to pay the same debt service that it has always paid and get real value for those payments.”
About 18 months ago, the district started preparing to replace this expiring debt. Officials sent out a survey and hosted four open community forums to get a clearer understanding of the needs and wants of all three schools in the district: East Hampton High School, East Hampton Middle School, and the John M. Marshall Elementary School.
“At the fourth meeting, we had all of the student leaders come and speak to the board about things they wanted,” said Adam Fine, the superintendent. “After that we looked at the money and said ‘We can get everything everybody mentioned in the $64 million with no tax increases.’ The other two things we realized quickly that had come up — one was the pool, which has been a constant theme for years. The pool was not going to fit in the first proposition, so it was going to be its own item. And then it was, ‘Okay, we want another auxiliary gym’ and that became its own item.”
The board agreed to adopt three propositions and let the community decide if it is willing to replace the expiring debt to cover the current needs of the district and also raise taxes to add a community pool and new indoor athletic facility at the high school.
Proposition One, valued at $64 million, is the proposition that replaces the expiring debt. If it passes, it will not raise taxes. At the high school, it includes a redone auditorium, a cosmetology lab, a partial roof replacement, security improvements, mechanical upgrades, track resurfacing, sports field lighting on the existing turf field, a new synthetic turf field with bleachers, reconstructed tennis courts, synthetic turf on the varsity softball field and varsity baseball outfield, new bleachers at the varsity baseball and softball fields, a walking/jogging trail around the campus, new scoreboards, a concession trailer, outdoor bathrooms, and a pollinator garden.
The middle school will benefit from a refurbished auditorium, security upgrades, new siding on the fire escape, masonry and trim repairs, mechanical systems, a partial roof replacement, new glass in the stairwells, windows, an English as a new language classroom, a Life Skills classroom, and a science lab. The John M. Marshall Elementary School will get new class bathrooms, a gymnasium sound system and upper window panels, corridor flooring, masonry repair, mechanical upgrades, new roofing, security upgrades, a gym floor and stage, kitchen improvements, and new multipurpose rooms for music and those with sensory needs.
Proposition Two, worth approximately $45.68 million, is the new community pool proposition. For an average taxpayer with an assessed home value of $6,000, the pool building will cost $203.26 a year over the next 20 years. The pool will have eight lanes and a one-meter diving board. It will also have bleacher seating, classrooms, restrooms, offices, a handicapped-accessible ramp, and separate locker rooms for students and the community. It will be used for student swimming and water safety instruction, as well as a vocational program for high school students interested in pool development and maintenance. The pool will be open to the community for a fee. Those fees will help cover the annual maintenance costs of $500,000 to $750,000, which are not included in the bond. The building would be located on the western side of the parking lot. The price of the project includes required modifications to current parking and traffic patterns.
Proposition Three, worth $18.5 million, is the indoor athletic facility proposition. For an average taxpayer with an assessed home value of $6,000, the indoor athletic facility will cost $82.53 a year for the next 20 years. It will have a full-size indoor basketball court with a synthetic floor that can be used for volleyball, pickleball, and other sports. It will also have an indoor turf field. The athletic facility will be connected to the pool building. Like the pool, it will be open to the community when it’s not being used by the students.
The propositions are dependent upon one another. Proposition One needs to pass for Proposition Two to pass. Proposition Two needs to pass for Proposition Three to pass, largely because of plumbing and state regulations.
“When we looked at the design of everything, we put the locker rooms and the bathrooms in the pool. It makes sense. And the pool is what’s connected to the high school,” Mr. Fine explained.
“In order to make the design as streamlined as possible,” Mr. Schneider added. “The indoor sports facility is just a box for indoor sports. There is no plumbing in it. If the pool doesn’t meet the approval of the voters, we cannot build the indoor sports facility for the budgeted amount.”
Adding plumbing to the athletic facility in Proposition Three would increase its price tag by $10 million. New York State will not allow the district to move leftover money from other propositions to cover that cost. Because of this, the pool must pass for the indoor athletic facility to pass.
Key things to remember about the bonds on May 19: If you would like a community pool, you must vote for the essential renovations (Proposition One) first. If you’d like an indoor athletic facility at the high school, you must vote for the pool (Proposition Two) first.
The exact bond proposition language as it will appear on the ballots, a description of the project, and the three renderings are currently on the district website. Voting will take place from 1 to 8 p.m. on May 19 in the district office at 2 Long Lane. Absentee ballots will also be available.
The Star will have complete coverage of the other items on the ballot — the 2026-27 school budget and the candidates for the two open school board seats — in the coming weeks.