WTNH News Channel 8 / News / 1999

	Town Debates Cost of Replacing Historic School (Old Saybrook-WTNH) _ Residents of Old Saybrook are faced with a tough choice. They can either approve the demolition of an historic school or they can try to come-up with millions of dollars to renovate the place. The question is: is the Main Street School worth saving?. News Channel 8's Peter Standring reports from our Southeastern Newsroom at The Day. It may be a landmark, but the old 'Main Street' school is certainly in rough shape. The roof leaks, the paint's peeling, things are falling apart and nothing works. It'd cost a fortune to renovate the place. Roland Laine, Town Exec. Assistant: "There's two different numbers used: $5.7 million, and $7.2 million. It's a lot of money." So the town is proposing an alternative: demolishing the 70-year old school and creating more space along the town green. That would only cost about $1 million. But not everybody's convinced that's a good idea. In fact, a lot of people say it'd be a crime to tear this old school down. To them this is a beautiful building with historical significance. An ideal place, they say ,to create a new town hall. Mark Reeves, Old Saybrook: "A lot of people who live in Old Saybrook went to this school, it has a lot of fond memories for them... I think it's also a symbol of the kind of town we live in." Lillian DePinho graduated from the Main Street School in 1939 and she says she couldn't bear to see it torn down. Lillian DePinho, Old Saybrook: "It would be wrong! I say: repair it!" Peter: "Not afraid how much it'll cost? "No." "You think it'll be worth it?" "Yes!" But town officials are skeptical and they hint that the money it would take to fix this place up could be better spent elsewhere. They're worried taxpayers may end-up biting off more than they can chew. Susan Townsley, First Selectman: "The only benefit to knocking it down is financial. It's an old building, and it's a very serious undertaking to go into a renovation program." There are other major projects in the works. The town will hold a referrendum on what do do with the school. Today's News Page. WTNH Home Page. ©1999 WTNH-TV A LIN station.

Town Debates Cost of Replacing Historic School
(Old Saybrook-WTNH) _ Residents of Old Saybrook are faced with a tough choice. They can either approve the demolition of an historic school or they can try to come-up with millions of dollars to renovate the place. The question is: is the Main Street School worth saving?.
News Channel 8's Peter Standring reports from our Southeastern Newsroom at The Day.

School It may be a landmark, but the old 'Main Street' school is certainly in rough shape. The roof leaks, the paint's peeling, things are falling apart and nothing works. It'd cost a fortune to renovate the place.

Roland Laine, Town Exec. Assistant: "There's two different numbers used: $5.7 million, and $7.2 million. It's a lot of money."

So the town is proposing an alternative: demolishing the 70-year old school and creating more space along the town green. That would only cost about $1 million.

School Interior But not everybody's convinced that's a good idea. In fact, a lot of people say it'd be a crime to tear this old school down. To them this is a beautiful building with historical significance. An ideal place, they say ,to create a new town hall.

Mark Reeves, Old Saybrook: "A lot of people who live in Old Saybrook went to this school, it has a lot of fond memories for them... I think it's also a symbol of the kind of town we live in."

Lillian DePinho graduated from the Main Street School in 1939 and she says she couldn't bear to see it torn down.

Lillian DePinho, Old Saybrook: "It would be wrong! I say: repair it!"
Peter: "Not afraid how much it'll cost?
"No."
"You think it'll be worth it?"
"Yes!"

But town officials are skeptical and they hint that the money it would take to fix this place up could be better spent elsewhere. They're worried taxpayers may end-up biting off more than they can chew.

Susan Townsley, First Selectman: "The only benefit to knocking it down is financial. It's an old building, and it's a very serious undertaking to go into a renovation program."

There are other major projects in the works. The town will hold a referrendum on what do do with the school.

Today's News Page.

WTNH Home Page.