The $23 million bond referendum put before voters by the Mineola School District not only failed but it wasn't even close as 1,021 voted against the proposal while 460 voted in favor of it. However, members of the board of education and superintendent of schools Dr. Lorenzo Licopoli believe that the schools are badly in need of repair and now will work to see how the repairs can be made with the least impact to the taxpayers as possible.

With financial times difficult for many residents and the recent arrest of the assistant superintendent for finance and operation for the district, there just may be too much for the voters to overlook and pass the referendum. The numbers were as follows:

Cross Street School

108 YES 205 NO

Hampton Street School

85 YES 284 NO

Jackson Avenue School

154 YES 428 NO

Meadow Drive School

142 YES 147 NO

Mineola Board of Education president RoseAnn Buglione read the following statement at the Feb. 17 meeting of the board:

"On behalf of the board of education, I would like to say that we are disappointed that the referendum failed. We believed that the bond was the best way in which to use our resources, including the Nextel lease revenue, in completing the capital work needed. A board's responsibility is to have a vision for the school district and a plan for the future — not just maintain from one year to the next. Had we been able to go forward with the bond, it would have put the district in a very good place and would have made our five-year capital planning a reality.

"We will continue to plan for the future but we will also have to deal with the realities of the present. We have windows at the high school that must be replaced now plus other capital work that also must be addressed in the very near future. The lack of bonding puts a severe burden on the budget and minimizes the amount of capital work that can be completed, which explains why we are in our current position.

"We will continue to reduce expenses. We will find a solution for capital work. We will do this for the benefit of our students, community and district."

The board of education and Dr. Licopoli feel that maintenance issues that have arisen such as exterior masonry work and the replacement of windows must be done. The most pressing is apparently the high school window and exterior door project that Dr. Licopoli believes is at an emergency status.

One option is to put the expense for window and exterior door replacement at Mineola High School in the proposed 2005-2006 budget.

However, putting a maintenance item in the budget may cause the budget to increase more than it has in the last few years. Board of education member Mary Ellen Williams said that if people were trying to send a message by failing the proposed bond, she is not sure what the message is other than the public's unwillingness to support the $23 million spending plan. Williams also said that if the board looks to resubmit the bond, it would be wise to open the floor again and re-solicit input from the public so the district can put something before the public that is palpable.

Buglione asked everyone who attended the Feb. 17 meeting for a reason they believe the bond failed. Many of the reasons were financial in nature. Some of the reasons included:

• Reassessment has caused some people who were deemed under-assessed to see the taxes rise. Some people couldn't therefore afford another hit to their pockets.

• The perception may have been that the bond contained too many luxuries as opposed to necessary work such as building a track and football field at the high school and relocating the main offices at the Cross Street School and Hampton Street School.

• People may not have been aware that some items in the bond were necessary.

• People's backs are up against the wall when it comes to finances.

• Work not getting done in from the 2000 referendum.

• The issue of the arrest of the assistant superintendent for finance and operations.

• People may not have been sympathetic to the plight of the district since it has one of the highest costs per pupil in the county yet its buildings are in need of repair.

• The idea of moving the football field from Mineola to Garden City

Park. Hampton Stadium, which used to host graduation ceremonies, still has a lot of nostalgia to some.

Still, if the district and board believe that some projects are absolutely necessary, they must find the most cost effective way to do the projects. The most cost effective way may still be through a bond so the board may consider another referendum

Richard Kotowski, an ex-chief of the Mineola Fire Department, believes that a bond referendum may have a better chance of passing if only the items that are an absolute necessity are put on it such as repairs.

Another possibility is the board could decide to resubmit the bond in parts, this way people can decide which parts they can afford.

Possibilities are expected to be discussed at the next board of education meeting, which will take place on Thursday, March 3 at 8 p.m. in the cafeteria of the Willis Avenue School.