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Written by: Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 30 July 2019

Created: 30 July 2019

Last Updated: 30 July 2019

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If you smell hot tar wafting down Wayside Lane, here's why. The Scarsdale High School Butler Track and Field will be closed for approximately two weeks. The track will be undergoing renovations, including resurfacing, recoating, and relining. Once completed, residents will have a beautiful new track to use. Here are some updates on the progress so far.

We also drove past Greenacres Elementary School to see the progress there. We saw dumpsters and backhoes. It appears they are excavating the site to prepare for the large addition. Here are some photos:

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Written by: Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 17 July 2019

Created: 17 July 2019

Last Updated: 22 July 2019

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Excavation for the addition at Greenacres Elementary School is underway.School facilities and renovations were top of mind at the first summer meeting of the Board of Education.

Butler Track and Field Update: Athletic Director Ray Pappalardi provided an update on the agreement regarding use of district fields and highlighted a few changes that were made since the last meeting.

The agreement now allows use of the field and the lights for practices until 9 pm rather than 8 pm.

Specifically, here is the draft of the regulation:

Practices on Butler Field using lights may be scheduled in August, September, October, November, March, April, and May. Practices with lights shall be used Monday through Friday only with lights off by 9:00 p.m.

The section on amplified sound now stands on its own and reads as follows:

Amplified Sound
a. Amplified sound will be used only for Scarsdale School events and only for:
i. a thirty (30) minute warm-up period prior to each contest;
ii. pre-event announcements and introductions;
iii. the National Anthem;
iv. event-time announcements.

The agreement specified a phone number and email address for complaints and permits exceptions with the approval of the Superintendent and/or his designee.

The list of Independent Sports Organization permitted to use the lit field was expanded to include Scarsdale Little League.

Pappalardi reported that he had prepared and submitted a packet to the Village for consideration by the Village Planning Board on July 31, 2019.

Following Pappalardi’s presentation, Board members had the opportunity to comment and Ron Schulhof said, “I have concerns with the change to 9 pm. We are in a dense setting. This is a concern. There has been no community meetings about changing the time from 8 pm to 9 pm. I would be uncomfortable to make the change to 9 pm without holding a meeting with all the stakeholders.”

Chris Morin defended the change, saying “We spoke about it at length. We had overwhelming support for 9 pm. The goal is to provide flexibility to the community at times when fields are wet. This would not be burdensome to the community as it would just be 10-15 kids.”

Scott Silberfein added, “The lights would be off by 9 – so practice would be over before then. It would be stopping at 8:45…. We’ll have opportunities for more public comment if the project is going to go forward.”

About the language that requires the Superintendent or his designee to make an exception, Dr. Hagerman said, “All provisions have clauses like these. People have to trust that we’ll use good judgment.” He continued, “We have no interest in being bad neighbors or upsetting people who live around the field.”

Mr. Mattey provided an update on the many construction projects going on in the district.

At Greenacres Elementary School the work has begun and the construction and staging fencing is up. The excavation for the addition on Huntington Avenue is in process. Inside the school, workers have begun demolition and the asbestos removal is largely complete. There will be additional demolition later on. Today, Mattey said, “Everything is on schedule.”

A meeting of the Greenacres Safety Committee was held on July 10 and Mattey said, “There have been no complaints so far, but some emails with suggestions.”

At Heathcote Elementary School the roof is being replaced. Mattey said, “It is a big project.”

At the High School, workers who were digging out the foundation to install new boilers hit some “heavy metals.” Mattey said these metals require testing and abatement. He said, “We were not expecting that. We believe it is left over from decades ago.”

Also planned this summer are the construction of security vestibules at all five elementary school. Mattey reported that the plans for the vestibules at Edgewood and Greenacres have been approved and the district does not expect these to be long projects. However, work at the other schools “will be more involved.”

Mattey anticipates that the asphalt at Butler Field track will be completed by Tuesday, July 16. After a 30 day waiting period, the track coating will be applied, and the work should be done after the first week of fall sports.

Stairway construction is in process at Fox Meadow Elementary School.At Fox Meadow work on the outdoor stairs from the school to the field is in process.

Air conditioning installation in the Heathcote, Fox Meadow and Quaker Ridge Libraries are in process.

At the Middle School new water boilers will be installed in mid-August.
Work on the emergency egress to the band room is ongoing and HVAC for the orchestra room will be installed in late August and early September. However, he reported, the new stage rigging will happen “more towards the winter.”

New elevators will be installed at the middle school and the high school. However, this has not been bid out as yet. Mattey reported that the elevator to the Foreign Language wing of the high school is now out of service. It will take 6-8 months to install a new one. Mattey said the installation will be “large and lengthy” and called it “a bear of a project.”

The Board of Education room at the high school will be redesigned with more functional and stylish mobile furniture that can be easily configured for a wide variety of usage of the room. Dr. Hagerman and Mr. Mattey are in the process of selecting it.

Resident Bob Harrison has spent years advocating for a comfort station – or bathroom – at the Middle School Tennis Courts, and this project now seems to be in process. Mattey reported that he met with representatives from the Village to look at possible locations.

Asked if they had found anything that could hold up the construction at Greenacres, Mattey said, “There was no moisture in any of the walls…… we have time to work around any issues.”

The interior work on the classrooms in the existing school is scheduled for completion by the beginning of the school year to allow the school to be used during the construction of the addition.

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Written by: Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 01 July 2019

Created: 01 July 2019

Last Updated: 01 July 2019

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Edgewood Elementary School students, teachers and parents gathered on June 25 for the final assembly of their centennial year to remember 2018-19 and say goodbye to Principal Scott Houseknecht who retires after almost 30 years at the school.

They sung the school song and looked back on a special year that included a talent show, the opening of the new Edgewood Library, a night at Citi Field, the unveiling of the time capsule, Edgewood Academy, a festive gala and much more. Assistant Principal Mr. Yang put together a slide presentation highlighting a year of events and celebrations at the school. Each class had the chance to contribute some mementos to the time capsule and a book of well wishes by the children was presented to Dr. Houseknecht.

Yang also arranged for aerial photography of the students in the school arranged to communicate a few parting messages – which you can see here.

Dr. Houseknecht will forever be rememberd at Edgewood as the new library and media center was named the Dr. Scott Houseknecht Library and Media Center.

Finally, the PTA presented this beautiful watercolor of Edgewood School, painted by Mike Teatoro to be displayed at the school.

Presenting the watercolor, PTA co-Presidents Susie Smith and Heedan Chung-Goh said,:

Dr. Scott Houseknecht, thank you for being our principal for close to 3 decades. During your tenure at Edgewood School, our children greatly benefited from your leadership in driving innovative educational practices within our building. Through your interest in teaching the history of our school, and cultivation of old and new traditions, you have nurtured in our children a sense of identity and place as citizens of not just Edgewood, but of greater Scarsdale. You have ensured that Edgewood is the finest place to be, a place of learning, caring, and belonging.

In your honor, the Edgewood School PTA is gifting a watercolor of the school.

This watercolor painting by Mike Teator is in special recognition of Edgewood School’s one hundred years of rich history for which the school has grown from a twelve-room schoolhouse in 1919 to the one we have today seen in this painting in 2019. In honor of our Centennial celebration, the Edgewood PTA lovingly dedicate this painting today, June 25, 2019 to the school and to Dr. Scott Houseknecht, Edgewood’s sixth principal from 1990-2019, who oversaw the growth of not only the construction of the building but also the hearts and minds of students.

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Written by: Joanne Wallenstein

Published: 20 June 2019

Created: 20 June 2019

Last Updated: 20 June 2019

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A joint meeting of the Scarsdale School Board and Village Board of Trustees was held at Scarsdale Congregational Church on June 19 to discuss the installation of lights at Butler Field.After months of meetings, community input, and the drafting of new policies and regulations, the proposal to install LED lights on Butler Field was reviewed before a joint meeting of the Scarsdale Board of Education and the Scarsdale Village Board of Trustees on Wednesday night June 19. Though many assume the field is owned by the school district, it is actually Village owned property that is leased to the school. Donated to the Village by Emily O. Butler in 1920, it has been leased to the school district ever since.

Many thought this final meeting would be a mere formality – and the Village Board would consent to the school district’s plans. However, in an unexpected turn of events, after the proposal was reviewed and the public was given time to speak, Mayor Marc Samwick made a surprising announcement. The Village Board will refer the proposal to the Scarsdale Village Planning Board for a recommendation – a move that could alter the plans and stall the project for several months.

The meeting opened with a description of the proposal and a review of the process. Athletic Director Ray Pappalardi, who has spearheaded the district’s efforts, explained that the district held a series of meetings to explore the feasibility of installing the lights. They developed preliminary designs, drafted a memorandum of understanding with Maroon and White who plans to raise $800,000, approved a formal donor recognition plan, came up with a field use policy and filed for a SEQRA review.

He said, “We have addressed concerns about lights, noise, trash and parking and have added more stipulations to regulate these.”

He explained that the state of the art LED lights would be mounted on four 80-foot poles and the light will have no spillover to the tracks. Ancillary lights will be needed to light the track. To address complaints about amplified sound, the district is proposing to use a targeted speaker system that will keep the sound inside the stadium.

Pappalardi explained that the district has “created rules as to when sound can be used” and is “currently working with the police on an event management plan.”

To address calls for an enforcement policy, Pappalardi added that a dedicated phone number would be installed for residents to make reports about field usage and noise and an email address would also be offered solely for complaints. In terms of usage, Pappalardi said that a total of 29 evening events under the lights would be permitted, with light usage to 10 pm. Asked where they could see similar lighting systems, Pappalardi said that Edgemont High School and Horace Greeley have similar lights.

About the sound system, Pappalardi said, “Its supposed to be a six speaker system with a range of 150 feet each – highly directional – the sound goes where the speaker is aimed -- toward the center of the field.” He added, “We will also need sound in the bleachers so that the spectators can hear.”

Trustee Lena Crandall expressed concern about the noise – including the whistles and the cheering. She said, “We want to be good neighbors.” She asked, “Have you investigated physical blocking or screening for the sound? Pappalardi responded, saying, “We discussed trees and natural screening to block the light and the sound. There are open gaps where trees fell down.”

Brice Kirkendall Rodriguez, President of the Old Scarsdale Neighborhood Association said some residents in his neighborhood association live in close proximity to the field. He explained, “There is not opposition to the lights but there is concern about use and over use.” He continued, “Previously residents were not expressing concern about noise because there was sun down. Once you put in lights that will end.” Referring to the lights he said, “80 foot lights are tall. That’s one of the tallest structures in Scarsdale and it will be visible.”

He continued, “I see two drivers for the lights: The scarcity of fields during rainy weeks is that’s both a village and school issue. One way to mitigate this is to allow more field access. The other issue is public events. We don’t want to burden these residents with night after night of events because there are no other fields.”

Janet Korins thanked both the boards and school administration saying, “A lot of work has gone into this process.” She continued, “Any solution has to be permanent and in writing. Old timers said they were promised that there would never be lights on Butler Field. The Board can change – and residents can change – so we need something in writing. The agreement must be permanent and enforceable.”

Charles Hellman of Wayside Lane said, “I have attended the meetings of the BOE and met with Ray to discuss the impact of the lights on the community. Noise has been an ongoing problem for years – but it happened during the day. But now the potential installation of these lights and use into the nights threatens to have a dramatic impact on the neighbors. The field has been there for 100 years, but it has not been used at night. The installation of 80-foot stadium towers in a residential neighborhood is a real concern. Once they are there, there is not a lot we will be able to do. What is the Village’s role in the decision-making? Can we find that out?”

A representative from the Scarsdale Youth Soccer Club said, “Our position is that we are very much in favor of these lights. There are 500 children in the SYSC program. We would be willing to sign a policy agreement limiting our usage.

Matt Conlan of Madison Road, an advocate for the lights defended the proposal. He said, “Look at how frequently the fields are wet. We can’t solve all of our problems with one lit field. We all agree that we are looking out for the best interest of the kids. Everyone agrees that the sound system we have now does not work. The new sound system will be beneficial to the students and the neighbors. I disagree that there was a promise that there would be no lights.”

Conlan continued, “Lights on field is the expectation of the homebuyer. They want lights on the fields along with wifi. 80-foot poles do sound high – but it’s the cleanest solution… This doesn’t exclude putting in more turf fields in Scarsdale.”

Susan Kohn Carstensan Road said, “I appreciate the opportunity to address the Village Board. Many of us who live near the fields have kids in the sports programs. Despite the widespread support there are concerns that have not yet been addressed. We are being asked to take a leap of faith on the noise, the lights and scope abuse. I am asking for an assurance that the sound system will work as planned; the lights will be as promised –- nightly practices – noise every night during the school year? As a parent – I see the stress the kids deal with. Noise night after night is not fair. As much as I support lights, studies come first. It’s easy for 8:15 to become 8:30. The noise travels. You hear the cars coming and going…. Provide some objective means that the sound system will work as expected and a real enforcement method. I am asking for the Village to provide the enforcement.”

Bob Harrison said “It seems like we need more turf fields ... I would like us to do Dean Field and a field at Crossway. I am a strong believer in protecting homeowners’ property rights. Homes in Scarsdale cannot be higher than 35 feet – so 80 feet is substantially higher. I look at this as an 80 foot high bowl of light. It’s got to be light pollution. Is there some kind of compromise? My 10 year-old grandson has 3-4 practices a week – are there any limits on this? Maybe we need more controls – or a strong educational commitment? Maybe we should look at some alternatives – battery powered lights – 20 -25 feet tall? And making an investment in more turf fields. We need a solution that takes into consideration our home values and the neighbors.”

Bob Berg said, “I support this project as a community building project but I am sensitive to the concerns of the neighboring residents. I think you are missing an opportunity to calm their fears. You should get an expert to do sound testing in other neighborhoods and find out the impact on the neighbors. Let’s go out and get the facts in advance. I don’t think the impact is going to be that great. Go out and get the information needed to satisfy everyone.”

Kate Conlan a Co-President of Maroon and White said, “I want to address some of the concerns and applaud the district for the work that you have done. The administration has spent a lot of time with concerned neighbors, ISO’s, the PRC – I urge everyone to put their faith in Thomas and the policy that has been well thought out. There have been 9 or 10 opportunities for public comment. The lights will be off for six months of the year. They are on in March and April, during the rainy season and in late October and into November. They are off in December – mid-March. I think the administration has done a great job and I urge you to listen to the BOE and administration’s policy. Our schools should be vibrant. It turns out there is noise all day long. The amplified noise is the issue and they are putting in $50,000 to improve that issue. … The high school is supposed to be noisy and vibrant and it is within the law.”

Julie Zhu of 11 Harcourt Road said, “About vibrancy – night time and weekends – we’re all for lively schools. We purchased property around the school. This is after sundown and after 8 pm. Faith and trust. I am a big believer in faith and trust. There was a promise that there would never be lights at Butler Field.”

At the conclusion of the public comment period Mayor Marc Samwick thanked everyone for their engagement and made it clear that the Village Board had come to a decision on next steps prior to the meeting.

Samwick announced that the matter would be referred to the Planning Board for review. He also invited the public to a meeting with the Board of Trustees and the Advisory Council on Parks and Recreation on Tuesday June 25 at 6:30 pm.

Here are Samwick’s closing remarks:

First, thank you to the School Board for providing the Village Board and the community with another thorough description of this project and all of the work that has gone into bringing the project so far along. Second, thank you to all of those who attended and shared their views with us this evening. Community engagement is a hallmark of Scarsdale and it is heartening to see a thoughtful and respectful discussion take place around this proposed project.

The Village Board had a preliminary discussion about the Butler Field light project on Monday evening and agreed to, as we have done on occasion in the past, refer this project to the Planning Board for its advisement as part of the Village Board’s review of this project. This is a similar approach to the one that was taken in 2013 when we enlarged and upgraded the Bus Depot at 110 Secor Road, another facility that the School District leases from the Village. We expect this process will be additive, as it was when the School Board brought the Bus Depot project to the Planning Board in 2013.

Once the Village Board receives the Planning Board recommendations, it will continue to work together with the School Board to determine the terms of the Village’s agreement under the Lease.

The Village Board will have a meeting with the Advisory Council on Parks and Recreation on Tuesday evening at 6:30pm in the 3rd Floor Conference Room at Village Hall. The community is welcome and encouraged to attend this meeting. We would like to continue to hear from you as we review this project.

Again, we thank everyone for attending this evening and for your engagement on this project.