Port Chester High School Expansion Up to Voters Dec. 22

The Port Chester School District will hold a bond vote on Tuesday, Dec. 22, for a $41.5 million expansion project at the high school, according to officials.

The plan, which was scaled down from more than $60 million, calls for the following:

• 11 New Academic Classrooms
• 3 New Science Rooms
• New Digital Art And Technology Spaces
• NHFS Regulation Size Gymnasium Seating 600 with Related Support Facilities
• Full Size Band and Choral Rooms
• Rooftop Educational Area
• Press box, concession stand and artificial turf football field

School officials say the bond also will fund additional improvements to other district schools, too, such as:

• MIDDLE SCHOOL - Replace inoperable projection equipment with state of the art visual and audio computer controlled units
• EDISON - Synthetic Turf Playground Area and Upgrades to Stage Lighting
• JFK - Media Center Renovation
• PARK AVENUE - Media Center Renovation
• KING STREET - Additional Parking (about 26 new spaces for a total of 76) plus new gym wall padding

The state has agreed to pay nearly $15 million of the project, which will reduce the net cost of the bond for taxpayers at just under $27 million.

“Our high school is overcrowded with enrollment expected to increase annually for years to come,” officials wrote in a statement. “Our village is growing and therefore so must our schools. Since 1995, Port Chester High School alone has grown from 915 students to 1321 for the current year. It is time for Port Chester to address this problem.”

On Tuesday, a school capital project bond request of $50 million was defeated by voters in New Rochelle.

The voting site for the Port Chester vote will in the Middle School Gym, and polling hours will run from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. on the 22nd.

For more information, visit the Port Chester School District website.