By Carol P. Bartold, Senior Reporter     

Nov. 29, 2017: On the heels of receiving a thank-you for improving staff parking at The Bronxville School, the Bronxville Board of Education fielded criticism for ignoring the 2015 mandate of voters to maintain the kickball field rather than repurpose it to accommodate cars.

Third-grade teacher Pam Kohlhoff, representing the Bronxville Teachers' Association, addressed the board at its November 16 meeting to express the group’s appreciation for increased parking on the school campus. 

“We can start our day stress-free and ready to be with the kids,” Kohlhoff said, describing as “amazing” the fact that staff members no longer have to scramble and fight for parking every morning. “It’s the first time in a long time that the parking situation has been wonderful.” 

Kohlhoff added that the ability to start the day on a positive note has a favorable impact on students and creates an improved state of emotional well-being among faculty and staff. 

Village resident Kathryn Hentschel, however, questioned the board’s decision to eliminate the former kickball area for the sake of parking in opposition to the will of voters. A 2015 referendum that allocated funds to reconfigure Hayes Field stipulated that the elementary school kickball area would remain intact. 

“I do not believe it’s a good solution for our children,” Hentschel stated. “You have made a direct decision to replace playground space with a parking lot. You will forever have those parking spots in that location.” 

Elementary school principal Trisha Murray stated that, even with the former kickball area taken away, students have more usable space for play with the completion of Hayes Field. “All of our kids now have a choice between the play equipment, the grassy area, and Hayes Field,” she said. “The kids are happy and they have a lot of space.” 

Parking, a perennial issue at The Bronxville School, became more difficult when construction began on the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Midland Valley Drainage Project. The construction staging area for the flood mitigation project closed the elementary school parking lot and removed 23 parking spaces for the duration of work. 

Board president Jeff Rohr noted that a parking study conducted in December of 2015 determined that the school needs 242 parking spaces for employees. The flood mitigation work temporarily left the school with 160 spaces. Rohr also stated that the district pays the Village of Bronxville for 30 parking spaces on Meadow Avenue and issues staff parking stickers allowing employees to park there. In addition, a small area adjacent to Chambers Field was paved to provide temporary parking. 

Rohr stated that the district had budgeted funds to lease up to 50 parking spaces at The Bronxville Women’s Club to make up for the shortfall on the school campus. “That would essentially have solved our problem,” he said. “We were working diligently and felt optimistic but determined that we could not get the zoning for that.” 

Rohr emphasized that neither the parking created on the former kickball area nor the lot next to Chambers Field is permanent. “Right now, we have no intentions to change it, but we haven’t said we’re not open to other solutions,” he said. “We just don’t have one right now.” 

Hentschel proposed encouraging employees to use public transportation. Board trustee Thomas Curran stated that public transportation is not a viable option for many teachers and staff members who have their own children to get to school and daycare facilities. 

“We have a school of limited space, with competing legitimate demands,” Curran said. He added that the district must support its staff in a manner that allows them to be as focused as possible on the students. “It will be my strong effort to keep the parking as it is, particularly in the light of no viable, reasonable alternative.”

Pictured here:  Cars parked on the Bronxville Elementary School's former kickball area.

Photo by A. Warner