Here is my biggest concern with the proposed all day kindergarten. Although conceptually there are pluses, I question whether we can afford it. And I think one of the biggest reasons we won’t be able to afford it has to do with the hundreds of apartments that are being built downtown. These apartments will be marketed to those with two income earners and young families. Our schools are going to be one of the largest drivers of families to those units. I question whether we will be able to afford the influx of new elementary age students as it is, and that problem will be compounded if we have to double the number of kindergarten seats both for existing children and new children. I worry that we are going to need to construct new classrooms at our elementary schools – – and I am not sure that cost has been factored into the equation. I simply haven’t seen enough to convince me that the $110 tax increase is going to cover the costs of new residents from the multifamily housing units. Particularly if we have to build new classrooms to accommodate these new students, then the $110 number may be multiplied very quickly.
We keep proposing to add more and more to our town without thinking through how each addition takes away from the whole. Those pushing for all day kindergarten need to also get involved in other aspects of our town as well so they can view and work towards making sure things remain in balance. It may be a great idea, but does it fit with the needs and budget of the town as a whole? If we are going to keep adding hundreds of new residents, will we be able to afford ideas such as all day kindergarten and are we going to need to cut back on other Village and school services in order to balance our budget?
