Come September, students, parents, and community members of the Bridgehampton School District will enter through a renovated vestibule featuring a secured entrance system. The receptionist, instead of sitting at a desk in the front hallway, will sit in a new office behind a thick glass window and “buzz in” visitors.
But members of the Bridgehampton School Board have taken issue with the type of window that was installed, saying Tuesday the school architect never gave them any options beforehand.
The rectangular window is a single solid panel, with a small slot underneath where identification cards or paperwork can be exchanged. On the receptionist’s side of the window is a fireproof metal panel that can slide down for protection in case of a fire or other incident.
During a special meeting on Tuesday night, six of the seven board members stood in the vestibule and agreed they wanted to explore ways to swap the solid window for something that slides, that can allow packages, lunches, books, and backpacks to be handed to the receptionist. The current plan, board members said, is to place a shelf or table in the vestibule where such items could be left, and a school employee would then have to retrieve them before passing them on to their recipients.
According to Ron White, the school board president, the fireproof panel was a custom-built option that cost between $12,000 and $14,000. That is what presents a challenge in changing the window, he said by phone yesterday.
“Our goal is to minimize the amount of back-and-forth from the public,” he said. “We’re going to see if we can explore some options.”
Another board member, Doug DeGroot, said Tuesday he has seen residential architects who have been “taken to task and are fiscally responsible for certain things that did not get homeowner approval and got done.” He said he would like to see Bridgehampton’s architect, John Grillo, respond in some way to the district’s dissatisfaction with the window.
“I’m not saying anything went wrong before [the vestibule], but I just worry about that,” Mr. DeGroot said. “We’re the customer and we have to have choices.”
Mr. Grillo, who frequently visits the schools he is assisting, could not be reached for comment yesterday.
Robert Hauser, the district superintendent, made a visit a few days ago to East Hampton High School, where he observed a security window in the foyer that has a sliding panel allowing visitors to hand over large items. He also said he confirmed that another East End district, Hampton Bays, has a similar sliding window.
Mr. Hauser said yesterday that Mr. Grillo “is aware of our concern.”
“He responded that from his experience with his school clientele, he recommends that you keep the window a solid window and that you allow visitors, parents, or whomever, who want to drop something off, that you place them on a shelf in the vestibule,” Mr. Hauser said. “He’s not recommending that we modify that window.”