https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/greenwich-old-greenwich-school-nisha-arora-18431364.php Oct 19, 2023 Jones was present at the budget committee meeting and wrote a letter to OGS parents the following day that said one member had made "reprehensible and egregious comments" without naming Arora specifically. "I want to assure you that GPS does not take the safety of our children lightly," Jones wrote. "In fact, we have demonstrated over just the past few years many times that when a building is deemed unsafe, we move our children out of the building. Buildings that are around 100 years old have areas where abatement must be performed, such as removal of asbestos, under extreme safety precautions with a detailed abatement plan. This is a common practice in school construction, and schools across the country deal with this regularly." Jones wasn't the only one to take issue with Arora's statements. James Waters, the OGS building committee chair, said Arora's comments amounted to fear mongering during the meeting. "School renovations are done across the state across the nation, including buildings similar age as Old Greenwich School," he said. "We have been clear that there will be some abatement required for this project. It is wholly incorrect for a member here to come up with crazy accusations about chemicals and asbestos. It's fear mongering from my perspective." Waters went on to say, "All of the kids will be kept safe and you know, I'm kind of appalled that someone would try to insinuate," before he was cut off by Republican Leslie Tarkington. "We're going a little far now, but I think we get the message," Tarkington said. Michael-Joseph Mercanti-Anthony, a member of the Greenwich Board of Education, noted that this OGS project plan was approved unanimously by Republicans and Democrats on the board. "The BOE would never unanimously approve a building project if we felt it presented any danger to our students or the community," he wrote in a statement. "The OG building committee took every step to ensure the proposed project meets all codes and safety standards. Renovating a building of this age is a fairly common occurrence and people know how to do it safely." During the full BET meeting on Monday night, Waters said Arora's comments about chemicals were "blatantly false." "We are going to do this project by the book, and all kids will be safe," Waters said. "If one of you has questions like that, I would encourage you to check in with me, rather than saying something demonstrably untrue." Arora said her comments were really about public disclosure, saying they were "really coming from a place of, you know, have you discussed this with the community" She then asked Waters if parents are aware there will be asbestos abatement. Waters said it had been discussed previously with community members and school staff. He also noted that the building committee has held seven public forums. "We will follow all state and federal regulations for abatement activities. It will be very transparent, it will be thoroughly communicated with the principal, and with the entire community. And the bottom line is the kids will be kept safe." In an email, Arora said she had heard from hundreds of parents who had questions about the renovation plan. "This is not a political issue. Kids are at risk of dying if exposed," she wrote. "We all 100 percent support modernizing OG - but we need to make sure kids are kept safe." It's unclear when construction work at OGS will start. Republicans on the BET on Monday voted against allocating construction funds for OGS, saying the project needs to finish design work first. The design work should be complete in December, Waters said, so construction funds could be allocated in January. If that happens, and discussions about state reimbursement go as planned, construction could start by summer 2024. ____________________________________________________________________________________________ https://www.newstimes.com/news/article/greenwich-old-greenwich-school-18287133.php Aug. 10, 2023 While the funding for renovations at the Old Greenwich School is still being deliberated, the approval process is moving ahead. The proposal to renovate the school and make it Americans with Disabilities Act compliant was reviewed at the Planning & Zoning Commission's Tuesday meeting, where the upgrades and preservation of the 1902 structure were endorsed by a number of community members. Speakers in favor of the renovation said they opposed any plan to tear down the old building and build a replacement, an alternative that has recently been aired at the Board of Estimate and Taxation as a more cost-effective plan. The expected cost of the renovations is in the $42 million range. The Board of Estimate and Taxation in June rejected an appropriation for the renovations, in a split vote, but the committee working on the project has been moving ahead and submitted the proposal to the Planning & Zoning Commission for approvals. A number of speakers at the meeting said they favored the renovation plan. "Our iconic school has stood as a landmark on Sound Beach Avenue for over a hundred years. I know there has been discussion by some members of the public to consider knocking the school down in lieu of renovation. I would ask that this not be a consideration of the commission," said the principal of the school, Jennifer Bencivengo. "It is absolutely worthy of preservation," said Jenny Larkin, a local resident who works on historic preservation in the community. She said town leaders should take steps to create a designation for the school so that it would be preserved "in perpetuity." Planning and Zonning Commission Chairperson Margarita Alban said it was not for the Planning & Zoning Commission to decide whether the building should be torn down, as it was the Board of Education and the building committee who had authority over the project. "If it is the decision of the building committee, in conjunction with the Board of Ed, if you all came to us and said, take down the building, we would respect your decision," she said. "All we can do is act on what's before us now." Alban said the goal of preservation was a worthy one that aligned with the community's master plan for overall development. She said it appeared there was strong community support in favor of preserving the school and that the feedback the commission had received was that local residents "were looking to preserve this New England feeling, this New England character" that the building represented. A consultant working on the design, David Stein, walked the commission through the plans, which include a new entrance, a new elevator, an addition with four new classrooms to relocate learning space lost to interior renovations, and other upgrades. The enrollment at the school is around 400 students. The commission said it would like more information on the design of the entrance, which is still being worked out, as well as data on flooding and drainage. The application is still in the preliminary stages, and a formal site plan has not yet been submitted for approvals. James Waters, who heads the building committee, said the group is continuing with the planning process despite the uncertainty over funding. He said the aim was to complete the design development process by the end of the year. Waters said there was broad public endorsement of the renovations. "Scores of members of the community have repeatedly stressed their strong support for the renovation and preserving the iconic structure at multiple public meetings," he said. Waters said the need to create access was an urgent concern, one that the renovation would fix "in the near term." As to the cost of the project, Waters said the renovations were in line with typical school construction: " The project cost estimate of $41.9 million, $524 per square foot, which is well within today's average cost for school renovations in the state of Connecticut," he wrote in an email. The planning application was left open for additional review. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ https://www.mdjonline.com/tribune/regional/old-greenwich-school-upgrades-get-unanimous-planning-ok-now-back-to-finance-board-for-42m/article_10233408-da04-565b-83a6-fc0e36eb94c2.html Old Greenwich School upgrades get unanimous planning OK; now back to finance board for $42M Oct 5, 2023 Oct. 5--GREENWICH -- The Planning and Zoning Commission gave unanimous approval to expand and renovate the Old Greenwich School, though issues about funding the multi-million dollar project remain. The commission authorized a municipal improvement for the planned construction work at the 121-year-old school and gave site-plan approval. Now the project needs to be funded by the Board of Estimate ... ___________________________________________________________________________________ https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/old-greenwich-school-planning-zoning-mi-status-18406127.php OCTOBER 05, 2023 The Planning & Zoning Commission gave unanimous approval to expand and renovate the Old Greenwich School, though issues about funding the multi-million dollar project remain. The commission authorized a municipal improvement for the planned construction work at the 121-year-old school and gave site-plan approval. Now the project needs to be funded by the Board of Estimate and Taxation, where Republican members of the finance board have previously turned down appropriations in split votes. James Waters, chairman of the Old Greenwich School Building Committee, said the planning approvals were an important step forward. "The Old Greenwich School Building Committee would like to thank P&Z for their unanimous support and thoughtful feedback last night. We were also overwhelmed at the support expressed by the community," he said after the Tuesday vote. "Receiving municipal improvement status is a huge milestone and enables us, once again, to seek construction funding from the BET. "Hopefully, the third time will be a charm as we have now answered all process-oriented objections, including new ones implemented in the past four weeks. If the BET and Representative Town Meeting approve, our state delegation will seek special legislation in the near term so that we can commence construction in summer 2024," he said. Waters opened his remarks to the commission Tuesday night by stating, "People want this project done, and they want it done now." The current building is not ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) accessible and has a number of maintenance problems. The renovation would add a four-kindergarten-classroom addition, a new elevator, entry plaza and upgraded security, among other construction projects, at an estimated cost of roughly $42 million. A number of community residents spoke in favor of the renovation plan at a teleconferenced hearing. Michelle Waugh, a local resident and OG School parent, said, "It is a must have." She emphasized the addition of a sprinkler system to the building as part of the upgrades was an important safety improvement. The commission reviewed drainage, flooding and design issues before giving approvals, asking the building committee to fine-tune design issues with the Architectural Review Committee. The commission also asked the building committee to prioritize flood mitigation and address flooding complaints from property-owners in the area. _______________________________________________________________________________________________ https://www.timesunion.com/news/education/article/greenwich-school-board-upgrades-capital-2025-18369116.php Sep. 20, 2023 In its first public view, the draft of the 2025 capital budget is more than $118 million and covers school renovation projects, HVAC upgrades and more. The Greenwich Board of Education reviewed the document for the first time last week. Blaize Levitan, the district's chief operating officer, said the starting point for the 2025 capital budget is what the Representative Town Meeting and Board of Estimate and Taxation appropriated for the 2024 budget. "This will be the first draft and there's going to be some items that are still very fluid on here," Levitan said. Schools Superintendent Toni Jones "mentioned that we are really doing a lot of studying and understanding where some of our infrastructure is standing now." Last year, the BET and RTM approved just over $54 million for the district's capital projects that included the Old Greenwich School renovation and the Central Middle School project. This came after the BOE approved a $122 million 2024 capital budget, the district's largest request ever. The 2025 capital budget will be for fiscal year 2025 -- July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025. The first draft of the 2025 capital budget includes money for OGS, CMS, improving Cardinal Field, renovating Riverside and Julian Curtiss schools, upgrading schools to comply with federal Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility requirements, HVAC upgrades and more. In the budget, Levitan said there is a placeholder of $2 million for ADA improvements since the district, along with the First Selectman's Advisory Committee for People with Disabilities, put out a request for proposal for an ADA assessment of most of the district's facilities. The study, which is being done by Silver Petrucelli & Associates, is already funded, so Levitan said the placeholder number could pay for some improvements to district facilities. BOE Member Karen Kowalski asked Levitan what made him decide to put $2 million as the placeholder for ADA improvements. "Nothing ... I am hoping for when we look at this the next time that we will be able to ask David Stein from Silver Petrucelli what is even like a reasonable number that we can use," Levitan said. Levitan said the study is about six weeks behind, but he added that "we will definitely have information through this budget process, but when we'll have it -- it's looking like it's more going to be October." The budget also includes $325,000 for improving Cardinal Field. In 2025, Weston and Sampson, a civil engineer firm, recommended that the district update the surfacing of the track. "That was last done in 2014, so about nine years ago, and it's past the end of its seven-year lifecycle," Levitan said. Levitan said that the engineers described some bigger safety problems with the field, especially with one of the tracks near the stadium. "The stadium is too close to lane eight," Levitan said. "It's within a fall zone for someone getting hit, especially if they were hurdling ... For this year, lane eight is closed, so they're just not using lane eight ... What they advised doing for now, which is ... the most important thing, is putting outdoor padding along the front of the stadium bleachers and then thinking about what our longer-term strategy is for the overall property -- are you expanding, are you going to do other things" The safety concerns will have to be addressed in two phases, he said, which will require BOE approval. Since the election is coming up and two current BOE members are not seeking re-election, a new board will be deciding what will happen to Cardinal Field, officials said. "We're not going to have the same board by the time that item is sitting in front of people and you can't make decisions for future boards, so you can spend three hours debating it, but I'm not sure it would be really helpful," Jones said. Another item in the draft document is a contingency fund for the Western Middle School soil remediation project. Levitan said that the reason he put in a contingency fund for the project is because the high school's remediation project has needed interim funding. "It's going to be a year-long project," Jones added. "There's no way that this is all going to be finished going into the following summer. Until we really start the work, it's going to be like the high school. Again, if we hit soil issues or if anything happens or delivery on the turf product, we don't know. It's not going to be a fast project. First they have to remove all the soil and then you have to rebuild the field." Levitan and Jones pointed out that the board has lots of options this early in the process. "Really right now, this is our chance to -- this is total first draft -- move around things," Levitan said. "Move things left, up, right, down as we get some more information." There will be a budget committee meeting in the next few weeks and two more BOE meetings to "go through everything," Levitan said. BOE Chair Joe Kelly asked Levitan how the new memorandum from the town's legal department about the timeline for municipal building projects impacted Levitan's plan for the capital budget. "At what point are we appropriating money, which we needed MI for now, versus what we didn't need an MI and could appropriate money" Kelly asked. "When we get to (2025), that's when the question comes up, it's when the funding gets appropriated ... I did actually reach out so we can coordinate with the guidance that the First Selectman is going to give to all town departments on capital on this interpretation," Levitan said. __________________________________________________________________ * A detailed scope has not yet been confirmed. As of September 2023, the project is in schematic design and seeking funding. A firm contractor bidding and construction timeline have not been established.