Voters narrowly reject $25M bond proposal to add accessibility, upgrades at Port Jeff schools

Port Jefferson school district residents on Monday defeated a pair of bonds totaling $25 million to upgrade school buildings and replace the grass football field at Earl L. Vandermeulen High School.

It is the second time in five years Port Jefferson residents rejected a facilities improvement plan.

Residents narrowly defeated the first proposition, which would have funded building improvements, by a vote of 498-474. A second proposition, to replace the football field turf, was defeated 734-239. 

In a statement emailed Tuesday to Newsday, district officials said they were “disappointed,” adding the narrow defeat of the building improvements bond “was particularly upsetting.”

The district said declining infrastructure remains “a top concern for the district” and “will require further discussion for how best to proceed.”

Port Jefferson resident Drew Biondo, who said Tuesday that he voted against both propositions, said the timing of the vote — in December, rather than in conjunction with the school budget vote in May — and the bond costs combined to drive opposition to the measures.

“People voted their pocketbooks. And I think it also proves that turf is a poison pill when it comes to these bonds,” he told Newsday. “Off-cycle bond votes anger voters. They feel like the issue is being snuck by them and they vote appropriately.”

The first proposition would have provided $23.1 million to improve bathrooms, heating and ventilation systems and music classrooms, and add accessibility for disabled students at the district’s three schools, officials said.

The second proposition, for $1.9 million, would have replaced the grass field with an all-weather, crumb-rubber surface. The change required passage of both propositions, officials had said.

The first proposition would have hiked taxes on a home assessed at $5,000 by $564 annually, district officials said. The second bond would have increased taxes on the same home by an additional $46 a year. Percentage increases were not provided by district officials.

District officials had expected state aid to cover about 22.5% of the costs.

Port Jefferson Superintendent Jessica Schmettan had told Newsday the first proposition would repair and restore school facilities that had not been updated since they were built about 60 years ago. The artificial turf field would have replaced a grass surface that requires year-round maintenance, she said.

The second bond had faced opposition from some Port Jefferson residents who questioned the need for a new playing surface and said artificial turf might harm childrens’ health.

The state Department of Health website says studies of crumb-rubber fields are inconclusive but have shown a “low potential for chemical exposure.”

District residents voted 1,455-374 in December 2017 to reject a $29.9 million bond that would have upgraded school facilities and the sports field.

By Carl MacGowan

carl.macgowan@newsday.comCarlMacGowan

Carl MacGowan is a Long Island native who covers Brookhaven Town after having previously covered Smithtown, Suffolk County courts and numerous spot news and feature stories over his 20-plus year career at Newsday.