POUGHKEEPSIE – Over $6 million in bonding would finance reconstruction of several Dutchess County buildings, roads and bridges.  The two bonding resolutions, about 3.2 million for buildings, and $3 million for roads and bridges, are in discussion stage.  There was a good deal of discussion in the Public Works and Capital Projects Committee Thursday.

Most of the debate was on just one component of the buildings bond – some $870,000 for replacing the conventional HVAC system at the highway building with a geo-thermal system.

Director of Physical Facilities Roman Yasiejko conceded conventional would save money, in the short run.

“If you don’t appropriate the funds for this, we’re going to go ahead and build the building as a conventional HVAC system without the geothermal.  That’s okay; we can do that.  But, what we’re saying is that we found a better way,” Yasiejko said. “The better way is going to cost a little bit more money, but, there’s a significant payback in order to do this.”

The current money situation facing the county concerned some legislators, including Democrat Tom Mansfield, who felt he was not getting sufficient information on where the county currently stands with its finances.

“So the question is: How we can be expected to be making an educated decision on this, with so little information.”

Commissioner of Finance Pamela Barrack had distributed a memo noting, among other things, that so far, revenues are a bit below expectations for the year.

Yasiejko said that actually makes the point for doing the work now.  “What we’re doing here is actually saving taxpayer dollars”, he claimed, saying putting off what he termed “anticipated maintenance” will just mean it will cost more later. 

Yasiejko noted they are encountering their own surprises, including an HVAC system in the Market Street building that failed just 12 years after installation.

Again, the bonding resolutions were for discussion only.  Votes will come later.