{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"Radio Chatskill","title":"Fallsburg School District Voters to Decide on $56.5 Million Capital Project With No Tax Increase","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":584,"description":"Voters in the Fallsburg Central School District will decide February 3 whether to approve a $56.5 million capital project aimed at addressing long-standing building issues, improving safety, and upgrading heating and cooling systems across district schools — a proposal district leaders say would come with no increase to local school taxes.The proposal was the focus of a recent conversation on Radio Catskill, where Superintendent Dr. Ivan Katz outlined what’s being proposed, why now is the right moment, and what families should know ahead of the vote.Years in the Making — and Prompted by HeatDr. Katz said the capital project has been years in the making, driven largely by deteriorating parking lots and the growing need to address extreme heat inside school buildings.“We’ve planned for several years to fix our deteriorating parking lots,” Katz said. “We knew it would be expensive to do so, so we set up capital reserves.”Those reserves — funds set aside specifically for major projects — were approved by voters in advance, particularly for heating and air-conditioning upgrades, which Katz described as the most expensive components of the proposal.The timeline accelerated after a New York State law passed in 2024 set 88 degrees as the maximum allowable temperature for occupancy in public school buildings beginning in September 2025.“That law prompted us to have to take action,” Katz said. “We needed to make sure that hot temperatures wouldn’t affect school attendance for kids.”Heat Already Disrupting LearningWhile a state-required Building Conditions Survey completed in 2023 identified a number of facility needs, Katz said the urgency became clear during last year’s heat waves.“This past June, our school buildings were getting so hot — especially cafeterias and gymnasiums — that we had to close school early on several days,” he said.Those early dismissals came during Regents exams and other end-of-year activities.“Losing necessary school time was not something we...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/q7XXsnSXT_u4mZLCn3chUorwDmUD_kWiB272D6emB18/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS80N2Uy/OGY5MWUwZThkYTEw/NDVkZGM2ZGZkZDIw/ZjliOS5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}