WATERTOWN, N.Y. -- Watertown's school superintendent said it's a concept and that there is no plan, but noted the school needs to look at some sort of elementary level consolidation and that would likely require a new building.
According to Superintendent Terry Fralick, right now there are imbalances in the five elementary schools in the city, including opportunities and experiences for students and class sizes. He also said there are security concerns with this wide footprint.
One concept, according to Fralick, would be to build one big building to house all 1,700 kindergarteners through fourth graders, and closing the five that are open. Another, he added, would be to build a smaller one for third and fourth grades and close the two schools on the ,orth side.
Fralick said the other reason to start this discussion is state aid. It's down from 95 percent for new buildings, he said, to roughly 85 percent -- depending on how you build. That number, Fralick added, keeps dropping.
"And at some point, the local share is going to increase so much that ... I'm a taxpayer, too," Fralick continued. "I'm looking at this going 'wait a minute.' There's a point where the local share is going to be so large that, even if you think the project is a great project, we're not going to be able to afford to do it."
As for what's next, Fralick said ideas will be tossed around, but right now it's all about research.