Siwanoy Elementary School Principal Farid Johnson led about 30 Pelham residents through his building on a Feb. 6 tour that was an element of the information sessions the district is holding on capital projects, with Johnson explaining the need for an expansion at Siwanoy.

Funding for such an addition would come from a bond referendum the school board is planning to put before voters in May. Trustees Jackie De Angelis (who is board president), Will Treves, Kathryn Cohen and Darra Gordon were in attendance at both the tour and the discussion that followed.

Many of Siwanoy’s rooms are used for multiple purposes, both during and after school. The art room triples in its utilization—also hosting band and orchestra lessons for students in grades three through five. Johnson said the room holds a minimum of eight and a maximum of 24 students. Along with regular instruction, the music room is also used by Playful Wonders, the after-school enrichment program run by Junior Wonders Nursery School. That makes it a storage space for both students’ instruments and the equipment used by Playful Wonders.

Teachers and administrators at Siwanoy have turned to non-traditional options for small-group instructional spaces. One hall closet has been converted to a speech room, and according to Johnson, the school psychiatrist’s office is sometimes referred to as an “interrogation room” by students because of its cramped size and lack of natural light.

A kindergarten classroom visited on the tour is two-thirds the size of a standard kindergarten classroom, said Johnson. The largest classroom at Siwanoy is for second grade instruction. It was formerly the school’s maker-space, and the library before that.

The information session following the tour was led by Superintendent Dr. Cheryl Champ and KG+D architect Walter Hauser, and reviewed the same plans for Siwanoy and PMHS presentred at the board’s work session on Jan. 28.

The school board is currently considering two proposals for Siwanoy—called Option B and Option C in the architects’ presentation—each with its own variation (Option B(-) and Option C1). Option B would fund construction of accommodations required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), two classrooms and new cafeteria at a cost of $29.9 million, while Option C, estimated at $40 million, calls for demolishing the building’s wings and replacing one wing with classrooms, a gym and a cafeteria and the other with a new playground. (The chart with this article shows further details on the proposals.)

Depending on which of the capital projects the board selects, the bond could also pay for an addition at the high school, renovations in all the schools and air conditioning and heat pump projects.

During the information session, resident Tami Altschiller asked if the board plans to put up one bond resolution or separate propositions for different projects, as had been done at times in the past.

Champ said, “That hasn’t been decided yet. That’s certainly something that the board is considering, because even when we think back to 2018, we did split separate propositions up then as well. The way that one was structured, it was actually fields of all things—even if the field proposition passed—if the facilities proposition didn’t pass, then the other would not be approved. One was contingent upon the other. The board hasn’t gotten that far in the decision-making, but that’s certainly an option of how to set up the bond.”

Hauser said educational construction projects aided by the state are held to strict guidelines by the New York State Education Department about what can be done before a project is authorized. The state prohibits detailed designs in order to save public money on rendering a project that may not be approved, so KG+D can only take the project to about 1% of the design before it goes to referendum, said Hauser.

“When we’re talking about projects for referendum, it’s really about a scope and a budget, not a detailed design,” he said.

Any addition to Siwanoy will take a minimum of 16 to 18 months to construct, according to Hauser. Option C would extend the construction time by at least 50%.

Most Attending Oppose Option C

During construction, barriers would be used to separate construction zones from student spaces, said Hauser. The barriers would be as close as possible to the building footprint in order to maximize usable outdoor space during the period.

Internal renovations to the building would take place during summers and school breaks, while additions would be built during instructional time. An on-site construction manager would work with Siwanoy’s principal to “minimize disruption,” said Hauser.

Community members at the meeting consistently spoke out against Option C, while many supported Option B. According to Champ, attendance had approximately doubled from the first information session and public forum at Siwanoy on Jan. 23, after which flyers were sent out by a resident calling on members of the community to speak out against major renovations that would demolish the building’s wings.

“ADA is not a permission slip to do whatever you want,” said Adam Ilkowitz, who lives next to the school. “Siwanoy uses its property” year-round, he said, for Kindergarten Popsicles on the Playground, the back-to-school picnic, pasta night, movie night, Culture Fest and the Spring Fling. Removing exterior space “would absolutely demolish our outdoor life as a community,” he said.

“It has been proven time and time again that exploring outdoor space and playing is such a huge part of education,” said another next-door resident. “Taking away play space is not going to benefit these students.”

Amy Platt, president-elect of the Siwanoy PTA, said she was “fully in support of Option B.”

“C is just going to be way to disruptive,” said a parent. “But I think B is a really reasonable option.”

“B is the obvious option from disruption, to cost, to the heart of our community,” said another Siwanoy parent.

An additional Siwanoy building tour will be held on Feb. 25 at 6 p.m.