Reprinted from The Trumbull Times © Copyright 2009
March 26, 2009

To the Editor:

When the preliminary plans for the high school renovation were made public, many residents raised an eyebrow about a project that appeared to focus more on wants than needs - and included a natatorium.

Many residents oppose the as new renovation. Others suggest that it would be prudent to scale back the scope of the project. Some question where Trumbull will find the money to complete much-needed updates and renovations at the rest of our schools. Parents may wonder how the town will ever be able to fund full day kindergarten if we're spending this kind of money to renovate the high school.

There are also many who support the renovation. But do they really know what they are supporting? This is an extremely pricey undertaking, much more expensive than is being communicated. the project must be effectively managed, budgets must be adhered to and the renovation should benefit, first and foremost, the students who attend the school.

In addition to $14 million previously spent to add space at the high school, the town has budgeted $68 million for the high school renovation and a separate $5 million for a pool.

the cost of the pool is estimated at $5.6 million, already over the $5 million budget. Locker rooms and public restrooms are being built for an additional cost of $2 million. That's $7.6 million for the pool. And, the $2 million is coming out of the $68 million, reducing the school renovation budget to $66 million. Money that was supposed to benefit our students is being used to construct facilities for the pool.

The initial phase of construction includes the boiler room, auditorium and the pool. the auditorium and the boiler room certainly benefit the students - but the pool? What happens to the rest of the renovation if the pool construction goes over budget?

What about the Hillcrest pool and re-using the space? The cost of this construction has not been estimated and is not contemplated in the as new renovation budget. The cost of this work, will will likely be in the millions, will be in addition to the cost of the as new renovation and the pool.

The renovation doesn't include new lockers for the students. The reason given is that the cost of the lockers is not reimbursable by the state. Think about that for a minute. In fact, lockers will only be put out to bid at the end of the project if there is money left over in the budget. And remember, the pool will have brand new locker rooms courtesy of $2 million coming out of he school's renovation budget.

Your tax dollars will pay for all of this. Get the facts and understand the true cost of this project. Some supporters of the renovation plan will likely dismiss this letter entirely but if just some of the readers are now scratching their heads and thinking that some of this just doesn't make sense, then this letter has served its purpose.

Kristy L. Waizenegger
Trumbull