Volunteers Needed for the Haldane Fields Committee!

Dan Hughes and Jon Champlin have been approved to co-chair a 60-day working committee with the task of reporting back to the Haldane Board of Education on how the community might be able to help make the rehabilitation of the Game Field and track a reality. One of the requirements of moving forward is that the project is budget neutral - meaning there is no increase in the tax levy on taxpayers. Another is that the project must include some work within the school (locker rooms and auditorium) in order to be eligible for state aid. Please find the committee charge on the Haldane web site --http://www.haldaneschool.org/download.axd?file=03e2acc7-b630-4a34-96a0-1c2cb5b1aab9&dnldType=Resource.

The committee's first meeting is scheduled for May 21st at 6:30pm in the Board Room (aka the fireplace room in the Mabel Merritt building). The meeting will start off with a presentation by Superintendent Villanti and Athletics Director Tom Cunningham who will give some history of the project, where we are with estimates that have been received, how much money is available from the school and what the amount of money is needed to close the gap.

In order to close the gap there are many possibilities that we can discuss/pursue -- getting additional proposals from other companies using the same specs as additional price points, securing in-kind donations from community businesses (ie. excavation, electrical, plumbing, etc. to be done under the guidance of an engineer), researching and applying for grants, securing corporate sponsorships, fundraising events, pushing out portions of the project to a "Phase 2". Another idea was having local "green" contractors construct the concession stand / storage building (again under supervision from an engineer) with solar power, no-flush toilets, etc. This would reduce the project cost for the school and allow the contractors to use this as a "showcase" project. And any other ideas you might have.

We need as much community help as possible so please join us that evening if you can -- and share this information with anyone else in the community who might be interested and willing to help out. We only have 60 days so we'll need to hit the ground running!