Polls Are Open: East Meadow Voters To Decide On $71.5M School Improvement Bond

EAST MEADOW, NY — The polls are open for residents to vote on a bond referendum that would affect the East Meadow School District to enhance safety and security, as well as enhance athletics and the arts.

The East Meadow School District's Board of Education agreed to proceed with a community vote through a bond referendum on Thursday, March 5, on the financing of comprehensive capital improvements.

The proposal's total cost is $71.5 million and would be financed through a bond. For those wondering how this would monetarily affect homeowners — the proposed bond would cost $31.86 annually for the average homeowner in the East Meadow district.

If approved, these improvements are planned for every building throughout the district with a heavy focus on security upgrades, athletics, and the arts.

Kenneth Rosner, superintendent of schools, said in a video the district has given careful consideration to this bond referendum, and one of the proposed plans is for safety vestibules – controlled entrances for all of the adults who enter the building.

All five elementary schools would get upgraded playgrounds, including the safety surfaces.

"We haven't done this bond haphazardly," Rosner said. "Everything was done through a building conditions survey, and we prioritized the big-ticket items based upon those surveys."

The polls are open until 9 p.m. at all East Meadow elementary schools on Thursday, March 5.

The district listed the following locations for voting:

• Barnum Woods Elementary School, 500 May Lane, East Meadow
• Bowling Green Elementary School, 2340 Stewart Avenue, Westbury
• McVey Elementary School, 2201 Devon Street, East Meadow
• Meadowbrook Elementary School, 241 Old Westbury Road, East Meadow
• Parkway Elementary School, 465 Bellmore Road, East Meadow