The talk around the Mineola School District in recent years is continuous improvement when it comes to student achievement. Now, though, talk is also including other improvement to the school district infrastructure, which Superintendent of Schools Dr. Lorenzo Licopoli said has been neglected when it comes to preventative maintenance.

At a special meeting of the board of education last Wednesday, discussion involved the district's five-year capital improvement plan, which it now has after years without one. The reality is that the district will be looking to spend millions of dollars to make improvements to the schools to make them ADA compliant and safer. There is also talk of the district making better use of its fields for its athletic program.

Although the district began putting aside $500,000 a year in its budget for capital improvements, the five-year capital plan the district is examining now would cost over $20 million, meaning going out to the public with a referendum could be inevitable.

Since there was no capital improvement plan in place nor was there a plan for preventative maintenance, the board of education challenged the superintendent to come up with a preventive maintenance plan that addresses the buildings in the district as well as the performing arts facilities and the athletic facilities.

The district is looking at a district-wide performing arts center that will addresses the problem of the deterioration of the high school's auditorium seating, stage and other accessories such as the sound and lighting.

To illustrate the need for facilities for the performing arts, District Director of Fine Arts Rob Ratner said that the stage was fortified so that it is safe this year. However, he said it would have to be re-evaluated after the school year. In addition, the auditorium seating is in need of replacing.

The district estimates that the cost for renovating the performing arts facilities in the high school would be $1,275,000.

The district's fields and athletic facilities are also on the district's radar when it comes to a five-year capital plan. According to the district, poor usage of fields currently exists, there is no competitive track for a track program that has become very successful and the lockers are badly in need of replacement.

The district is looking at building a football stadium at the high school that could also be used for track, soccer and lacrosse, converting the Hampton Street stadium into a baseball stadium, forming new softball, lacrosse, soccer and practice football fields, renovating the girls' and boys' locker-rooms and coaches' offices as well as forming a multi-purpose field at Jackson Avenue.

The district estimates the cost of the physical education and athletics initiative to be $5,085,000.

The district's capital improvement plan also calls for beefing up the security at each of the buildings to include a perimeter security system, exterior lighting and the upgrade of fire and smoke detection. The district estimates the cost to be $635,000 for the high school, $540,000 for the middle school, $210,000 for the Cross Street School, $250,000 for the Hampton Street School, $345,000 for the Jackson Avenue School and $230,000 for the Meadow Drive School.

The plan also calls for improvements to the individual building to restore and renovate infrastructure areas as well as making the buildings compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Acts (ADA).

At the high school, the estimated cost is $50,000 to make the building ADA compliant; $2,490,00 for improvements to the infrastructure and $885,000 for site work improvements such as converting the tennis courts to a parking lot, repairing asphalt roads and parking areas, enhancing appearance of the front of the school and replacing fencing and curb cuts.

At the middle school, the estimated cost for improvements to the infrastructure is $797,000, which includes exterior window and door replacement as well as exterior masonry, replacement of interior doors, repair of limestone as well as the replacement of stair handrails; the cost of renovation, which includes organizing classroom clusters for grades 6, 7 and 8, is $1,180,000 and the cost for the site work, which includes improvements to the front of the building including a bus loop, new sidewalks and fencing is $250,000.

At the Cross Street School, the cost of making the school ADA compliant is estimated to be $40,000; the cost of improvements to the infrastructure is estimated to be $545,000 and the cost of renovations to include moving the main office to the front entrance of the school and building a conference room in the old main office is estimated to be $188,000.

At the Hampton Street School, the cost of making the school ADA compliant is estimated to be $40,000; improvements to the infrastructure are estimated to be $162,000 and moving the main office to the front entrance of the building is estimated to be $88,000.

At the Jackson Avenue School, the cost of making the school ADA compliant is estimated to be $20,000 and improvements to the infrastructure are estimated to be $653,000.

At the Meadow Drive School, the cost of making the school ADA compliant is estimated to be $52,000; improvements to the infrastructure is estimated to be $595,000 and renovations to the entrance and lobby of the school are estimated to be $75,000.

The district is also exploring extended parking at the bus garage and constructing work area/office space for the buildings and grounds department at an estimated cost of $715,000. The board of education will be discussing the capital plan at future meetings and exploring what the community can afford. Meetings scheduled include Nov. 4 and Dec. 2. During the Nov. 4 meeting, there will be an overview of engineering impact on cost estimates and the Dec. 2 meeting will discuss the final proposed tax impact and board of education direction. A possible referendum based on board action could go out to the public in 2005.