Residents of Herkimer-Fulton-Hamilton-Otsego BOCES component school districts voted 611-44 on Tuesday, Sept. 29, to approve Herkimer BOCES purchasing the former Remington Elementary School from Central Valley.
The Central Valley community voted 256-16 on Nov. 12, 2019, in favor of selling the building to Herkimer BOCES, so this second vote was the last step in the public approval process necessary for the purchase to take place.
Herkimer BOCES has leased the Remington school building at 77 E. North St. in Ilion from Central Valley since 2013 and proposed the purchase as a more permanent solution to its space needs.
During the 2019-20 school year, 212 school-aged children from the 10 component school districts and 250 adults from the community attended programs housed in the Remington building.
Under the ownership of Herkimer BOCES, the building will be known as the Herkimer BOCES Remington Educational Complex.
Herkimer BOCES District Superintendent Sandra Sherwood commented how grateful she was for this vote outcome, which was a more than 93 percent approval rate.
“The strength of this vote really shows how much the programs and services housed at the Remington Educational Complex mean to our schools and communities,” Sherwood said. “I know the staff and the students will be thrilled to hear these results!”