Kings Park School District budget proposing $6.5M transportation center upgrades

The Kings Park School District is looking to finance a $6.5 million project that would replace two aging structures, including a transportation center where it houses its fleet of about 60 school buses.

On the ballot for the May 21 school district budget vote will be two propositions: one approving the school budget for the 2024-25 school year and a second authorizing the district to spend money from two capital reserve funds and the district's general fund, according to the budget presentation and the district superintendent.

The first proposition seeks voters’ approval for a $106.7 million school district budget for the 2024-25 fiscal year, a 2.6% increase from the district’s $104 million budget, which will result in a 2.38% tax levy increase for taxpayers, according to numbers provided by the school district.

The second proposition seeks permission to spend both capital reserve and general fund money for a project that involves tearing down the transportation facility on Lawrence Avenue and building a new facility that would also replace a trailer. The district uses the transportation facility to house and communicate with buses. The trailer serves as office space for a transportation supervisor and a bus dispatcher, according to District Superintendent Timothy Eagan.

The projects also call for new paving and curbs at the transportation facility and upgrading the building's electrical systems, according to a presentation district officials have shown at school board meetings.

The new transportation building would require more power to comply with state mandates to transition buses from internal combustion engines to electric power, which will require "significantly more" electrical output, Eagan said. The current building has 200 amp service, according to information the district provided. The new building would get 2,500 amps to support the electrification of the initial 15% of the district's school bus fleet. 

Voter approval would allow the school district to use money for the projects from two capital reserve funds and unspent general fund money.

Capital reserve funds allow school districts to set aside funds that normally would go toward planning and paying for large-scale projects such as school building repairs and new equipment and facilities. To spend from them, the district needs approval from voters. 

The largest of the two funds has $2,566,361.71, which comes from a reserve fund that voters approved in May 2019 for a facilities improvement program, according to Eagan. After its creation, the district gradually filled the 2019 capital fund over several years through placing unused money from the school budget into the fund, Eagan said.

The remaining money would come from $2,800,000 in unspent funds from the 2023-24 general fund and a capital reserve fund containing $1,161,799.50, district officials said.

School district officials have been working on financing the project for several years by saving money in the reserve funds after noting the structures needed repair jobs, Eagan said in an April 30 interview. New York State rules require voter approval to both create and spend money from capital reserve funds. 

“Structurally, it’s not worth adding on to or repairing [those buildings] at this point,” Eagan said, noting the transportation center dates back to 1981, while the trailer is more than 25 years old.

The trailer wasn't intended to be permanently used, and the transportation center’s roof has been leaky, according to Eagan. Architects and engineers have recommended against fixing the center after several studies, he said.

A new structurally sound building “is a necessity" to continue operating a transportation center on the Lawrence Avenue property, Eagan said.

Jackie Costello, president of the Fort Salonga Parent Teacher Association and a district school bus driver, said in an interview May 1 she is hopeful the public will pass the proposition. 

A new facility “will greatly improve safety conditions” for drivers, such as by paving potholes in the bus parking lot, Costello said.