Tours give Kings Park residents peek at needed school fixes

Residents of the Kings Park Central School District can Wednesday begin touring the district's six school buildings to gain firsthand knowledge about their conditions as officials plan for much-needed improvements.

The 30-minute tours, which start Wednesday at Kings Park High School, will be led by a member of the district's facility committee and will include student leaders and building principals. One of the former elementary schools is now an administrative building.

The tours come as the district faces a nearly $41 million bond vote this year to replace dated roofs and boilers, and make other improvements to the buildings over the next five years.

"If a picture is worth a thousand words, seeing these items that need to be updated is priceless," said Kings Park schools Superintendent Timothy Eagen. "Anything that we can put together that affords the residents the opportunity to see what needs to be done I think is beneficial."

The Kings Park board of education is reviewing the committee's recommendations and plans to make a final decision on the total cost and scope of work by mid-October, Eagen said. A voter referendum is expected in mid-December, he added.

School officials ask that attendees arrive 10 minutes before the tours. No advance registration is necessary. Tours are scheduled as follows:

Wednesday and Sept. 29 at 6 p.m. at Kings Park High School

Sept. 16 at 6:30 p.m. at Fort Salonga Elementary School

Sept. 21 at 5:30 p.m. at San Remo Administrative Building

Sept. 21 at 4 p.m. at Park View Elementary School

Sept. 25 at 6 p.m. at Ralph J. Osgood Intermediate School

Sept. 28 at 5:30 p.m. at William T. Rogers Middle School.