Restaurants recycle shells to improve marine environment State aid, interest rates to impact capital projects

BY RIKKI MASSAND

The Syosset Central School District’s special Board of Education meeting held on Tuesday, July 25, offered insights into the looming capital and infrastructure needs of the district as well as the financing that will be undertaken to pay for it.

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Thomas Rogers said if every part of the board evaluation and district’s public engagement continues as planned, with a facilities bond referendum more than likely, the earliest time for starting this round of facilities construction would be almost two years from now, in summer 2025.

Dr. Rogers said there are various considerations that go into the timeline, including high interest rates, inflation in the construction marketplace and supply chain issues.

“Ultimately we are talking about some borrowing with the large amounts of construction, as we had with our last facilities referendum. There were quirks in our experience on the bond market…literally on the day of the purchase of our bonds as we were able to get incredibly favorable bond rates – akin to getting 2% mortgages for 20 years. Obviously the interest rates are not nearly that low right now,” Dr. Rogers told the board of education on July 25.

He insisted that Syosset CSD remains “a stickler for bonds and insurances.”

The Town of Oyster Bay's shell recycling program, which is completing its inaugural year, has attracted shell donations from over a dozen local restaurants, and is seeking more contributions.

“Through is innovative program, the Town seeks partnerships with local restaurants and other entities to collect oyster and clam shells from dinner plates and kitchen preparation tables,” explained Town Supervisor Joseph Saladino. “Town aqua-culturists regularly pickup shells from local partners and deliver them to an environmental curing facility.

In just our first year, we’ve collected more than 20,000 pounds of oyster and clam shells, diverted that waste from landfills, and saved restaurants in their carting expenses. Once ready for deposit into waterways, the shells are strategically placed at the bottom of local Oyster Bay and Cold Spring harbors, helping to strengthen our local marine environment.”

Shellfish are essential mollusks in the local

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“Hopefully we see easing of those cost pressures, without any relaxation on the state aid reimbursements we would get – those are still unknown, and we will be watching and tracking it closely over the course of the next two years,” the superintendent explained.

While interest rates are high at present, a major consideration is that New York state aid for school systems’ upgrades has “never been higher.”

Superintendent Rogers told Syosset’s Board of Education, with several of its nine members who have been on the board for less than two years, that the school district learned much about financing its facilities during its last bonding process for infrastructure.

“We try to avoid borrowing where possible. This focus isn’t universal in the school district world but it’s something we think is very important. In our last round of construction much of it was done through the district budget – within the maintenance budget and transfers to capital. By doing so we avoided any higher interest costs that we might have incurred.”

Dr. Rogers continued, ”For the next round, the more of the existing capital reserve we pledge towards our construction projects, the less borrowing we will have to do – that is even more attractive now given the high interest rates.”

State aid reimbursement

Rogers’ presentation outlined that state aid has increased to reimburse 42% of approved costs.

School Board Trustee Jack Ostrick asked if the current preparation of a facilities and infrastructure priority list by consultants H2M Architects +

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