Flood Mitigation Project and Field Expansion

The Board of Education heard more detail about the joint District-Village flood mitigation project that has received a FEMA grant. The District's engineering consultant, David Lombardi of John Meyer Consulting, made the presentation, recommending that the District approve the project and giving an overview of the construction schedule. The proposed project has been approved as a FEMA project costing $6.9 million. The grant covers 75% of the project costs ($5.2 million; the local share of $1.7 million is split between the Village and the School District. The plan calls for installing underground storage tanks under Hayes Field. A pumping station located on the edge of school property would direct storm water run-off to the Bronx River when it is safe to do so. The storm drain capacity under Midland Road would also be increased. Once approved, final plans will be developed, and the project is scheduled to begin early 2015 and end in September 2015.

Board discussion focused the design and effectiveness of the system, the role of the state, and the tentative construction schedule. The Board requested more information about the system and more detail about the proposed schedule.  A second presentation will come when the plans are further along.

Excavating Hayes Field and installing underground storage will be a major project during the construction period, with massive amounts of soil removal required. Restoring the fields raises the question of what should the field design be, with what type of surface. Board President David Brashear said,

If this project moves forward, we are hopeful that we may be able to expand Hayes Field to full regulation size for most sports . . . As we learn more, we will report on our findings and any opportunities that emerge. Once again I would like to reiterate that we are not yet at any decision points.  But as I have said before, we are committed to the end goal – and that is to provide the facilities necessary to meet the needs of our programs and the needs of our students.

 

 Architect Russ Davidson displayed a possible reconfiguration of Hayes Field that would occur in tandem with the flood mitigation work. The reconfiguration calls for laying out a competition field and installing artificial turf. This would have an impact on the Elementary playground and parking. Such a plan would increase the School's flexibility to schedule games, representing another approach to address current constraints. The Board is also exploring various other off-site options for field expansion.  The architects estimate the projected cost for regrading and installing artificial turf and redesigning the Elementary playground would be in the range of $2.5  to 3.5 million. Both projects would require public approval through a bond referendum.

-