Development News

Seasons construction to begin soon

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The Seaford Avenue School will stand for at least another month, but construction of a new senior housing complex is expected to begin shortly, according to the developer.

The 1938 building is being readied for asbestos abatement, which must be completed before it can be demolished, said Steven Krieger, a partner with The Engel Burman Group, which is constructing the Seasons at Seaford. The development will include 112 housing units and a clubhouse.

In the meantime, Krieger said construction can begin on the units on the athletic fields at the back end of the property, where nothing has to be torn down. The pouring of foundations is expected soon. “We’re very excited to get started here,” he said, adding that the land approval process in Nassau County takes a long time. Voters approved the sale of the property in December 2012.

The property was officially sold to Engel Burman on Sept. 18. “It feels great,” Krieger said of finally acquiring the land at the corner of Seaford and Waverly avenues. Fencing, along with dust screens, has already been installed around the perimeter, heavy equipment is on site and a construction trailer has been set up next to the Seasons sale office.

Community members continue to have concerns about the development, and a post on the sale on the Growing Up in Seaford Facebook page drew more than 150 comments. Concerns ranged from what is felt to be an excessive price for the units — starting at $454,000 — to traffic. Others said they welcome the additional tax revenue it will bring.

Krieger said that once the school is torn down, Engel Burman will arrange a way for people to get a memento from the building, such as a brick. He said that many people who live in Seaford went to the school, and many people buying the units at the Seasons either went there or sent children there. “There’s a lot of sentimental value there,” he said.

He added that many people from Seaford and surrounding towns are purchasing the units, which will be roughly 1,000 square feet. “We provide housing for the residents that built these communities to remain in these communities for their rest of their lives,” he said.

A groundbreaking ceremony had been scheduled for Monday, but was postponed due to weather concerns.

Money put in special reserve

Proceeds from the sale of the Seaford Avenue School will go into a designated reserve fund that will be used to offset the district’s tax levy over the next decade, according to school officials.

The Board of Education and administration, meeting on Oct. 1, for the first time since the deal was finalized, discussed how the $5.14 million from the sale will be used. Superintendent Brian Conboy said that New York state has very strict rules on how money from the sale of property can be spent.

According to Elisa Pellati, the assistant superintendent for business, the money is in an account where it will accrue interest, and must be used within 10 years. She said that while it has to be used to offset the tax levy, it can fund other reserves or cover expenses that would normally be paid for by Seaford’s taxpayers.

Pellati said that the best use of the money would be to fund one-time expenses, such as building repairs and capital projects, included in each year’s operating budget. It would be unwise to use it for recurring expenses like salaries, she said, because the money will eventually run out. Conboy said that the last major upgrades were performed on Seaford’s schools following approval of the 2008 bond, and there are some projects still on the district’s wish list.

Board of Education Vice President Brian Fagan cautioned against using a large chunk of money from the school sale at the end of the 10-year period, because then there would be a big gap that taxpayers would have to make up. Instead, he suggested using it gradually.

Pellati and Conboy suggested that that is the plan, saying that when they begin preparing the 2016-17 budget, some of the sale money would be included. As a result of the tax cap and low inflation, school districts across New York state are expecting a very low allowable tax levy increase — likely under 1 percent. Seaford could use the money to make up the difference, and it would not have an impact on the cap. “We’re fortunate that we have a revenue source that we haven’t had, ever,” Conboy said.

This year, Seaford restored several items, including teachers, support staff, department chairs and a full middle-school sports program, and administrators and board members want to sustain that.