Editor’s Note: This story was reported and written by Ray DePaul, the Herald’s Newmark Journalism School intern. Funding was provided by New York Community Trust – Westchester.
New classrooms. Solar panels. Greenhouse renovation. Paved parking. District-wide air conditioning.
Numerous improved and more environmentally friendly facilities are planned for Peekskill schools, giving students and their families a lot to look forward to.
Surprisingly, it’s all without any tax increase.
A well-orchestrated confluence of finances was behind the Peekskill City School District’s decision to place two resolutions, totaling $44 million, on the ballot in December of last year. When voters approved both, school officials began implementing significant innovative and necessary renovations and capital improvements to the district’s school buildings. This year was the planning stage of the improvements which are expected to be completed by 2027.
The forces that aligned to enable these improvements include the school district’s retirement of existing debt and a public vote to approve the two propositions, one for capital projects and the other for an Environmental Performance Contract (EPC). Peekskill residents will see no tax increase for numerous improvements that should benefit students academically, improve aesthetics and substantially increase the sustainability of the buildings.
Environmental Performance Contracts uphold commitments to green energy usage and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Using Environmental Performance Contracts for example, another New York State town saved $9,000 after conducting several environmentally friendly changes to its operational and functional sectors, according to a New York State Energy Research and Development (NYSERDA) best practices memo.
“By bringing this Environmental Performance Contract project to voters, we qualify for an additional 10 percent [from state funds] to each dollar spent in our district,” said Cynthia Hawthorne, the assistant superintendent of business for the Peekskill City School District. “That’s the reason it’s so special.” State funding will increase from 86 percent to 96 percent of the total cost of the Environmental Performance Contracts. That may not seem like a huge difference, but it’s big.
“It’s a no-brainer. [Say] the work costs $1,000, but if 96 percent is covered, we only pay $40,” said Hawthorne.
The capital projects include classroom renovations and general school improvements, while the Environmental Performance Contracts focuses on green initiatives that bring many other benefits.
“Our goal is to transform, innovate and modernize our school facilities,” said Dr. David Mauricio, Peekskill’s Superintendent of Schools. “Our Board of Education set forth a vision to make sure we have facilities, classrooms and school environments equivalent to [others] in Westchester County.”
“Our students deserve the best and it is our job as leaders to ensure that they receive the best. By choosing the route of an Environmental Performance Contract, we [can] get a large amount of work done with no additional cost to the taxpayers of our city,” added Carmine Crisci, the school district’s director of facilities. “That is a win-win for everyone in Peekskill.”
The robust plans for both the Environmental Performance Contract and the capital improvements are the result of hard work and dedication from many invested people.
“This is a long process that needs input from various stakeholders, including the school superintendent and administration, Board of Education, faculty and staff, and the community,” said Crisci. “The challenge is ensuring that we assemble a project that not only meets the district’s immediate needs, but that all parties will support and get behind.”
Crisci is overwhelmingly positive about how these proposals will impact both the schools and the community at large. He played an important role in the genesis of proposals and now interacts with other key members to see them come to fruition.
“A big part of my job is long-term planning for maintenance and construction. These documents are put together by myself, the district architect and the engineering team,” Crisci said. “Once we have these plans in place, we then work with the business official and the Superintendent of Schools to determine the scope of the project we can put forward to the community.”
Due to working with Ameresco, an environmental engineering company partnering with the school district on the Environmental Performance Contract, the district will also receive $50,000 towards the district’s K-12 STEAM (Science Technology Engineering Arts Math) curriculum. This significant addition also comes only two years after the unveiling of the STEAM Innovation Center, a $3 million lab in the high school, in 2022.
An additional benefit of working with Ameresco is their track record in energy efficiency, infrastructure upgrades, asset sustainability and renewable energy projects for school districts across the United States, as well as incorporating green education for the students whose districts they are improving.
Amelioration of the flooring, millwork and the modernization of furniture is a common theme planned for each of the school buildings thanks to the Environmental Performance Contract.
Peekskill has a high population of minority and low-income students attending the schools. “There are school districts with beautiful facilities [elsewhere in the county]. We want that for our kids as well,” said Mauricio.
Some highlights of the renovations are described below.
Peekskill High School: Additional classrooms, infrastructure improvements
The number of students enrolled in Peekskill High School in recent years has passed the 1,000 threshold. Members of the staff claim that the building could not fit further demand, as it is already “above capacity.”
The proposals include plans to install three flex classrooms available within the Administration Building, which is across the street from the high school on Elm Street, an outdoor classroom and additional classrooms where the fitness center used to be located.
These five new classrooms were deemed “desperately needed” by school staff members in a video guide to the proposal last year.
Other functional improvements at the high school include implementation of LED lighting, replacement of boilers and new corridor ceilings on some floors, installation of air conditioning, and the addition of solar panels to the roofing.
The capital project plans to update the gymnasium and add bleachers, to create a “grander” entrance that will also ideally improve the safety of the building and to renovate a lobby. Also, it will adapt the boys’ locker room to include changing rooms, storage and bathrooms.
Hillcrest Elementary School: Solar panels, new roofing, new paving
Solar panels will also be added to the Hillcrest Elementary School. The building’s synthetic rubber roofing has reached the end of its 20-year warranty period and will be replaced.
Cirsci said that “Solar energy is the main driver for our Environmental Performance Contract; its savings give us the opportunity to perform other work.” That includes adding unit ventilators in classrooms and lighting improvements.
Aside from the new roofing and installation of cost efficient LED lights at Hillcrest, the outside playground area will be renovated and the parking area will be paved.
“There are so many aspects of the capital project that will enhance our students’ day-to-day experience,” said Cirsci. “The Environmental Performance Contract will not only provide the district with needed upgrades to mechanical equipment, it will also ensure that we are doing our part to reduce carbon emissions.”
Oakside Elementary School: Greenhouse repairs, modernization
Oakside is also adding classrooms, in addition to modernizing its appearance.
To extend the learning environment into the outside environment, the greenhouse is going to face some repairs and some of that is coming from grant funding as well.
“It is so hot [because of] the sun beaming on the courtyard that you really just can’t use it,” said Mauricio.
The Oakside greenhouse has been a staple of the school but in recent years has fallen into disrepair, sporting fogged windows. The funding from the Environmental Performance Contract is allowing the school district to “give [the] students the opportunity to use it the way they should,” according to Crisci.
A cooler future
Helping students keep cool indoors during the school day, especially at the beginning and end of the school year, should also be improved district-wide.
All of the school district buildings will see updates to their energy management and HVAC systems, providing air conditioning to significantly more areas in each building.
Much research has been done on the importance of air conditioning in schools. One such study by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that for each one-degree increase in average school year temperatures, there was a proportional one percent decline in the amount learned during the school year.
Lack of air conditioning – during the school year as well as summer terms, if applicable – can impede learning for any student.
Going forward with the projects, Crisci reiterates confidence in the direction they are headed.
“We hope to continue expanding the feelings of Peekskill pride that our previous capital projects brought to our community,” said Crisci. “We want our students to see that we are investing in them and their futures.”
