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DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. – After spending the past 20 years in disrepair, the Aqueduct Stairway on the Dobbs Ferry High School/Middle School campus will be usable for the first day of school next week. The Aqueduct Stairs Improvement Project began in June, and although the steps will be usable for the start of school, they won’t be completely finished until the end of September.
“The renovation project will enable students to more safely walk and ride their bicycles to and from school, as well as have easier access to the village via Cedar Street,” the school district said Tuesday in a statement.
The concrete stairway will have a temporary railing for the start of school, said Sylvia Fassler-Wallach, assistant superintendent of finance, facilities and operations. By the end of September, the stairs will be covered with granite and the temporary railing will be replaced with a permanent steel railing, Fassler-Wallach said.
The $200,274 project is being funded by the maintenance budget from last year and will include a bike channel to allow students to roll their bikes alongside them while they use the stairs, the district's statement said.
“The District will be responsible for maintaining the Aqueduct path that connects the stairway to the Aqueduct trail,” Fassler-Wallach said in the statement. “The Aqueduct Stairs and Beacon Hill Stairs are both important gateways between the community and the School District. Our goal is to provide a safe way for students, staff and residents to access our schools and the village of Dobbs Ferry.”
The remaining stair construction will be done on days when school is not in session to avoid disrupting the flow of traffic, Fassler-Wallach said.
Comments (4)
Now I would recomend putting in survailence cameras and some motion sensistive lights along every fifty yards of this O.C.A. pathway .It would cost comparitivly nothing,to what it could prevent.Digital camera web cams parents could check from home are now cheap as beans to buy and install ,if you do it Union Free!
Thanks Paddy329 and Mika, We've swapped the picture. It is now Dobbs Ferry Middle School/High School. -- Debra West, editor
I appreciate the information, but the bad news is that you have a picture of another school all together! I thought the story is about Dobbs Ferry Middle School/ High School and not Ardsley?
The renovation of these steps will improve the connection of the campus to the Aqueduct, facilitating a more direct route to both Mercy College and the Dobbs Ferry downtown. It is a small but important part of Dobbs Ferry's commitment to a more walkable and bikeable community. One small detail, however: if you need a picture of the Dobbs Ferry campus, let me know. Your picture is of the Ardsley High School.