Meyer Pitches Idea for Additional High School Gym During Bond Discussion

At the Riverhead Board of Education’s first public discussion on a proposed $78.4 million bond on Tuesday night, board member Greg Meyer echoed similar sentiments voiced by fellow board member Tim Griffing last month, stating that the proposal does not offer enough athletic facilities for high school athletes.

When architecture firm BBS, Griffing, who was absent from Tuesday’s meeting, said the proposal was "sorely lacking" in the athletic facility upgrades.

Meyer offered one significant upgrade of his own.

The second term board member, , suggested adding another indoor gym to the proposed plan at the high school. Noting that roughly 100 indoor track students get their training running the halls of the high school each winter because the indoor sporting facilities are so packed, Meyer also suggested an elevated running track at the added gym.

Knowing just a few basics - approximately 200 seats in the bleachers, high school basketball and volleyball regulation courts - architects ballparked a new gym around $4.5 million. Without an indoor elevated track.

"The district is in dire need of interior gym space," Meyer said, adding that varsity basketball practice sometimes starts at late as 7 p.m. because courts are being used by other local organizations. The only interior gym space added in the proposal is a weight room, Meyer said.

Meyer suggested several interior recommendations to the high school which he said would have created an extra classroom; however, a requirement for natural light in each instructional room threw off his plan. In devising his recommendations to BBS, Meyer said he cut the proposed faculty space from approximately 5,800 square feet to roughly 3,500 square feet. He said the proposed faculty space at is being cut nearly in half to 466 square feet.

Following the school board meeting, Meyer said he is "not at the stage yet" to say whether he's willing to support the bond proposal as it currently stands.

"This is the first time we've been able to hear other people's ideas. I just want to do this right," he said. "This is a lot of taxpayer money, and I don't want us to do just enough and have to come back later say 'We should have done this.' That wouldn't be fair."

Board member Angela DeVito called the athletic upgrades wants, not needs. 

Using a proposed press box upgrade she said was price tagged around $700,000 as one example, DeVito said items in the bond proposal should be limited to needs, not wants. 

"If it's not a security issue, I can't see us throwing money into it," she said. DeVito invited Athletic Director Bill Groth in to the board's next meeting later in June to get see if scheduling of athletic facilities could be improved for students, an idea Meyer welcomed.

Board President Ann Cotten-DeGrasse said at the end of the board meeting, "Personally, I would like to see the board support this recommendation ... there is always room for improvement ... I hope we don't slow the process down to the point where we're thinking, 'what about this?' or 'we could consider that.' We need to move forward with this project."

The board of education will continue to discuss the bond proposal, after which point it's assumed it would vote to offer a capital improvements bond referendum to the public. Voters rejected a $122 million bond in early 2010.