Faced with the possible closure of Cold Spring Early Learning Center, Stanford residents pushed back at a Pine Plains school board public hearing on Sept. 2, with speakers either opposing the shutdown outright or calling for more information before a final vote.
The hearing gave community members a chance to respond to an August educational impact study prepared by the school board’s Building Utilization Advisory Committee (BUAC).
Citing declining enrollment, uncertain state funding, and escalating costs, the report makes a case for shuttering Cold Spring beginning in the 2027–28 school year. Under this consolidation plan, Pre-K through first-grade students would move to Seymour Smith Intermediate Learning Center in Pine Plains. Three of the committee’s 20 voting members opposed the final recommendation.
The BUAC study projects over $1.1 million in annual savings, including $942,727 from eliminating staff positions and another $200,000 from eliminating two bus runs. Leasing Cold Spring, rather than selling it, would generate additional revenue and preserve $300,000 in yearly state building aid — forfeited if the school was sold.
Kyle Odell, a father of four and one of three dissenting BUAC members, criticized the report for presenting what he described as an overly optimistic financial picture.
A certified financial planner, Odell said the projected salary savings represent a best-case scenario. “The purpose of all this is to find ways to reduce the budget,” he said. “The money it will cost to get Seymour ready will bring that [figure] down to three-quarters of a million dollars — less than 2% of our budget.”
The district’s school budget for the upcoming school year is $40.49 million.
Odell also expressed concern that the Anderson Center for Autism, which currently rents two rooms at Cold Spring, could leave if the facility loses basic upkeep like janitorial services, imperiling the state aid.
Caroline Blackburn, a Stanford attorney with two children in the district, called the numbers provided in the BUAC report rough estimates and unreliable. She said that the study minimizes the impacts of closing Cold Spring, adding, “I’m not willing to accept that as a conclusion without confirming major fiscal savings, and it simply isn’t proven yet — at least not publicly.”
Both speakers also voiced concerns that the planned accommodations for younger students were less than ideal. “There will be longer bus rides for our smaller learners, a playground too small even after refurbishment, and two phys ed classes held at the same time,” Blackburn said. The BUAC report states that a curtain will separate the gym classes.
Travis Christian, father of six, said that Cold Spring was the ideal learning environment for young students. “The numbers, taxes and money only tells a part of the story,” he said. “Closing a school that provides a unique experience for the most vulnerable is a general failure.”
Parent Sarah Knickerbocker, who serves as secretary for the Town of Stanford recreation department, planning board, and zoning commission, warned that local ordinances could strictly limit repurposing of Cold Spring to protect agricultural and residential zoning. She called it “wishful thinking” that the school could easily be used in ways other than rental.
Just prior to the public hearing, Superintendent Brian Timm reviewed the history of the district’s right-sizing goals that led to the consolidation proposal. He noted that since 2024, the district has logged extensive information on its website, including a five-year fiscal plan, a building utilization study, and data from workshops on enrollment, staffing, and facilities. Timm emphasized that the BUAC was specifically formed in response to community feedback from school board-led forums to provide a deeper dive into the impacts of school consolidation
Timm later told the Herald that a decision on the consolidation proposal is expected “sometime in the near future.”
In other business, the Board of Education agreed to reject all offers from its recent used school bus auction by Auctions International after the event generated just $25,000 in bids —a steep decline from the $70,000 netted last year. Timm and Business Official Laura Rafferty attributed the drop to a supply and demand issue, noting that prospective buyers had 117 buses to choose from this year. The district previously averaged $10,000 to $11,000 per bus via the auction site—up from $3,000 when the district sold buses privately. The board will re-list the vehicles when the market supply decreases.
Board President Amie Fredericks followed up on an issue from the previous meeting, which addressed Columbia County motorists failing to stop for school buses and not being ticketed. She said that board member Jim Griffin had alerted State Assemblymember Didi Barrett, State Senator Michelle Hinchey, and Dutchess County legislator Chris Drago; the district transportation department contacted the Columbia County Sheriff’s office. Fredericks spoke to the Dutchess County Sheriff’s office.
“They are going to be working with us further in the upcoming days to address this,” she said.