Eastchester to Hold Bond Vote on $1.9 Million Sports Field Renovations

Eastchester residents will have the chance to vote in December on a $1.9 million Board of Education spending measure to install a new synthetic turf field for the district and make other facility improvements.

The board voted unanimously this week to hold the $1.9 million bond vote on Dec. 12, and the district estimates that it will cost each homeowner roughly $30 per year for 15 years. Earlier this week, the voters in nearby Hastings-on-Hudson rejected a similar - but more costly - school renovation bond project that included improvements to that district’s sports fields.

Eastchester school officials say the current turf field has exceeded its life expectancy and is no longer usable due to “exposed seams and worn surfaces.” The field is currently closed, but the track encircling it remains open. Students in both middle school and high school have used the field extensively, in addition to local sports teams and the Town of Eastchester summer camp program.

The school district plans to hold a couple of informational hearings about the bond project, which includes some masonry work at the middle and high schools, but the dates for those hearings have not yet been announced.

Polls will be open on Dec. 12 from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. If approved, the field project would be completed by the fall of 2014.