Time to Consolidate Long Island Districts (Roosevelt, Roslyn: real estate, private school, live)

[Glad2BHere]

Originally Posted by watamensch

That said, property taxes make no sense... why does a new home, worth $1M pay HIGHER taxes then a house with the same value that's 100 years old?

Do you mean two houses, in the same exact town, with the same exact features, in similar locations (such as not on main roads, etc)?

Usually new homes pay much higher taxes b/c they are usually larger, have more bathrooms, and have central air, etc. If all other features are exactly the same, the taxes would likely be very similar.

[VTP]

I think the point that was made was simply a conclusion that people who are willing to pay significantly higher taxes for a certain school district shouldn't have to consolidate with districts comprised of residents who pay lower taxes. Although one poster suggested that the tax burden could be lowered for everyone in the event of consolidation, this suggestion ignored the fact that those of us who pay high school and property taxes do so as a matter of choice. It's a struggle, and we don't love doing it, but it is our only real guarantee that our children will receive the kind of education we desire for them. For us, this is preferable to reaping the reduced tax costs of consolidation, where our children's education becomes an "unknown."

[TristansMommy]

Originally Posted by Glad2BHere

Oh Jeez. Do you read the news? Newsday? The problem in Huntington is unrelated the values/prices going down everywhere. The main problem lies in the disaccord within the school district alone. The problem with homes in the Huntington and South Huntington SD's remain, despite whether home values all over the US were skyrocketing OR sluggish. And that is due to one HUGE demographic, much of it coming from the rundown, crime ridden, illegal prominent parts of Huntington Station (which exists NO matter what the home values on LI are).

First.. the neighborhoods are what they are .. schoool consolidation won't change that. The Discord is most likely from those in the "more exclusive" part of town worried that if their child goes to school with someone from the less desireable part of town their education will suffer.. which is nonsense. We're all taught the same curriculum wether rich or poor. If the school has AP, then those desiring to better themselves will be in AP classes, or those that can will and those that can't won't. The discord is from the fear... like being school alongside less disadvantaged people in the town is a disease that the other kids will catch. The value drop in property is fueld by the medias coverage of the now "less desireable" consolidation of the two schools.. and others say.. "oh..well I don't want to live there". BUT.. perhaps, rather than FEAR something if the community embraced it.. recognized that their post neighborhoood will still be that.. and that their kids wills till get a good quality education regardless..this consolidation would have NO effect on property values because the rich part of town will still be hte rich part of town and so on and so forth.

I don't know what's goign on there.. I haven't read about it..but sicne we're talking consolidation I'm sure you're probably talking about the two districts becomoing one or something.. but I can tell, without actually KNOWING the details, what is going on there ..and it all boils down to "fear" and we're better than them so don't let them in type attitude.

[TristansMommy]

Originally Posted by VTP

I think the point that was made was simply a conclusion that people who are willing to pay significantly higher taxes for a certain school district shouldn't have to consolidate with districts comprised of residents who pay lower taxes. Although one poster suggested that the tax burden could be lowered for everyone in the event of consolidation, this suggestion ignored the fact that those of us who pay high school and property taxes do so as a matter of choice. It's a struggle, and we don't love doing it, but it is our only real guarantee that our children will receive the kind of education we desire for them. For us, this is preferable to reaping the reduced tax costs of consolidation, where our children's education becomes an "unknown."

Again.. taxes aren't neccesarily determined by which SD you're in!!! There are several factors.. AFter all .. administration costs are the bulk of school taxes and THAT is consistent across the board. Your taxes are determined by land size, house size and value.. along with wether or not there are commercial properties within your district. So.. if all things are equal, including the "quality" of the SD but one district has a large commercial section adn the other has NO commercial section thant he people living in the district that has no significant commercial section is going to pay significantly more in taxes..so does that make their school district "better" because they are paying more taxes..

Again.. the "we pay more so it must be better" mentality is completely false.

NO>. what they are paying for is to live in a district that has NO COMMERCIAL surroundings.. so that it is completely quiet and more secluded from the general public.

And I'll say it again.. if you take an area that has a zoning for am in of an acre per plot and break it up like the town next door, regardless of the SD, it would bring taxes almost pretty equal

Heck.. some of the more exclusive neighborhoods actually pay LESS taxes per assessed value than less expensive neighborhoods and so on and so forth.. Their tax bill is higher because the value of the home is higher and nothing more!

[Glad2BHere]

Originally Posted by TristansMommy

The value drop in property is fueld by the medias coverage of the now "less desireable" consolidation of the two schools.. and others say.. "oh..well I don't want to live there". BUT.. perhaps, rather than FEAR something if the community embraced it.. recognized that their post neighborhoood will still be that.. and that their kids wills till get a good quality education regardless..this consolidation would have NO effect on property values because the rich part of town will still be hte rich part of town and so on and so forth.

I don't know what's goign on there.. I haven't read about it..but sicne we're talking consolidation I'm sure you're probably talking about the two districts becomoing one or something.. but I can tell, without actually KNOWING the details, what is going on there ..and it all boils down to "fear" and we're better than them so don't let them in type attitude.

Entirely wrong. Not all the time that people want to avoid crime, poverty, trouble in the schools is it based on sheer fear. Many times it is based on fact, not fear.

The property drop is due to people who do not want to be in that school district b/c of the troubles that are going on due to gangs (mostly illegal immigrants) in the schools. Not the media hype. People who have worked in the district, in addition to people whose children are students there, all say the same thing.

And I am not talking about two districts becoming one, I am talking about children getting bussed to other parts of their district to level the racial playing field.

[TristansMommy]

Originally Posted by Glad2BHere

Entirely wrong. Not all the time that people want to avoid crime, poverty, trouble in the schools is it based on sheer fear. Many times it is based on fact, not fear.

The property drop is due to people who do not want to be in that school district b/c of the troubles that are going on due to gangs (mostly illegal immigrants) in the schools. Not the media hype. People who have worked in the district, in addition to people whose children are students there, all say the same thing.

And I am not talking about two districts becoming one, I am talking about children getting bussed to other parts of their district to level the racial playing field.

Well.. did you ever think that perhaps breaking up the kids that are in the "poor" school is in essence breaking up the "gangs" and in the end will make school much safer all around for all kids involved...

Because..after all it should be about the children shouldn't it. Perhaps your children will rub off on these children and your school performance will not change.. but rather these students performance WILL change because it breaks away the negative environment and atmosphere.

But alas. the "exclusive" neighborhood won't allow it to happen or will fight it out of fear that these students will "pollute" their school, etc.!

No.. what it will be doing is dilluting the problem so that it's not so strong.. t he stink is being made out of fear and it's not being given a chance out of fear! Period.

[PizzaPedro]

If success in school isn't tied to the kids background, what would be the advantage of mixing the kids up? What do the "poorer" kids get from it? Since you think the "rich kids" are all stuck up snobs devoid of redeeming quallities, why would you want your kids to go to school with them in the first place?

You don't make yourself better by dragging other people down. This is the USA. If people want to live in an "exclusive" school district and can afford it, they should be allowed to do so.

If you are concerned about kids the the "lesser" school districts, that's great. Let's find ways to improve those schools. But the first thing is to improve the home situation. The issue is single parent homes. It's having too many kids and kids at a young age. It's drugs, it's irresponsible behavior.

I went to a "bad" school district growing up. I still did well because I had a stable family and parents that were involved. But I had a lot of bad experiences that I wouldn't wish on my kids, which is why I decided to make financial sacrifices to live in a top district. That's my right.

If you wish to improve the quality of your school district that is commendable. But the answer has to come from within, it's not trying to screw over other people.

[Glad2BHere]

Originally Posted by PizzaPedro

If success in school isn't tied to the kids background, what would be the advantage of mixing the kids up? What do the "poorer" kids get from it? Since you think the "rich kids" are all stuck up snobs devoid of redeeming quallities, why would you want your kids to go to school with them in the first place?

You don't make yourself better by dragging other people down. This is the USA. If people want to live in an "exclusive" school district and can afford it, they should be allowed to do so.

If you are concerned about kids the the "lesser" school districts, that's great. Let's find ways to improve those schools. But the first thing is to improve the home situation. The issue is single parent homes. It's having too many kids and kids at a young age. It's drugs, it's irresponsible behavior.

I went to a "bad" school district growing up. I still did well because I had a stable family and parents that were involved. But I had a lot of bad experiences that I wouldn't wish on my kids, which is why I decided to make financial sacrifices to live in a top district. That's my right.

If you wish to improve the quality of your school district that is commendable. But the answer has to come from within, it's not trying to screw over other people.

Bravo to this post. Wish I could give you rep points for it, but I gave them to you yesterday for another great post of yours.

[TristansMommy]

Originally Posted by PizzaPedro

If success in school isn't tied to the kids background, what would be the advantage of mixing the kids up? What do the "poorer" kids get from it? Since you think the "rich kids" are all stuck up snobs devoid of redeeming quallities, why would you want your kids to go to school with them in the first place?

You don't make yourself better by dragging other people down. This is the USA. If people want to live in an "exclusive" school district and can afford it, they should be allowed to do so.

If you are concerned about kids the the "lesser" school districts, that's great. Let's find ways to improve those schools. But the first thing is to improve the home situation. The issue is single parent homes. It's having too many kids and kids at a young age. It's drugs, it's irresponsible behavior.

I went to a "bad" school district growing up. I still did well because I had a stable family and parents that were involved. But I had a lot of bad experiences that I wouldn't wish on my kids, which is why I decided to make financial sacrifices to live in a top district. That's my right.

If you wish to improve the quality of your school district that is commendable. But the answer has to come from within, it's not trying to screw over other people.

First..I don't live in a poor school district.

Second..I'm not denying anyone the right to live in an "exclusive" area. AGain, with the Huntington argument we are not talking about turning your "exclusive good school in a good neighborhood" into a "bad district" simply by busseing a few kids from a poorer district into the more wealthy district. We're also NOT talking about character here.. in otherwords, this has nothing to do with wether I feel all kids of wealthy parents are snobby...which if you go back nad read my post I don't think ALL are.. but I will say a vast majority are. Now.that being said, a few students beign bussed in from a less desireable school WILL NOT, CAN NOT AND HASN'T TURNED YOUR SCHOOL INTO A LESS DESIREABLE SCHOOL!

And I go back to this argument yet again.. Let's juts say Schools get consolidated.. to eliminate excessive administration etc. The students that are going to, say a Roslyn H.S WILL STILL BE GOING TO THAT SCHOOL BECAUSE IT'S IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD. It will STILL Exist as such.. Glad2BeHere has argued that some students get bussed in from other districts to the good school for whatever reason.. okay.. fine.. that will not drag down your "good district".

I agree.. that how well a student perorms depends on their home environemnt. Many kids are at a disadvantage by having a horrible home life.. BUT.. perhaps, just perhaps, by going to school with kids who DO have a stable home life they will learn that there is more to life than just a mother and father who are alcholics, druggies etc. AGain.. good can rub off on them if they SEE other things.. adn by the same token those priveledged students could learn from those less privledged.. by learning that not every parent out their can provide all the luxuries they enjoy and watch someone appreciate the small stuff..

That's all I'm saying.. You can still have your "exclusive" neighborhood.. no ones trying to take that away from you.. don't worry the ghetto won't be moving in!

[Glad2BHere]

Originally Posted by TristansMommy

Well.. did you ever think that perhaps breaking up the kids that are in the "poor" school is in essence breaking up the "gangs" and in the end will make school much safer all around for all kids involved...

Because..after all it should be about the children shouldn't it. Perhaps your children will rub off on these children and your school performance will not change.. but rather these students performance WILL change because it breaks away the negative environment and atmosphere.

But alas. the "exclusive" neighborhood won't allow it to happen or will fight it out of fear that these students will "pollute" their school, etc.!

No.. what it will be doing is dilluting the problem so that it's not so strong.. t he stink is being made out of fear and it's not being given a chance out of fear! Period.

All I can say to you is you speak from idealism, not from experience and realism, and it clearly shows. You don't want to open you ears to the truth in the world, and you seem to blame all the problems on "those with money" when in fact, they are the least to blame in our school problems.

To me, you show blantant prejudice against those with money, favoristism towards those with less $ and so you will find a way to justify anything and everything that you say.

Good luck with your school consolidation plight and wishes. You certainly won't get most of the Island to support you, no matter which way you swing it.