You Can Buy a Lot of Dry Erase Markers and Glue Sticks for $9,000

An astute reader writes...

" We are paying an extra $9K so that the lab table tops will match the ones bought years ago. When I toured [Washington] DC, a big deal was made about the Washington Monument having 2 different shades of granite since the Civil War interrupted construction and the original quarry closed in the interim. If slightly different shades of stone are good enough for our nation's most treasured obelisk, why is it not good enough for the Taj Mahighschool?

You can buy a lot of dry erase markers and glue sticks for 9 grand..."


What we wonder is: 
Which is more important:  spending every last dollar of referendum money matching the countertops?  Or helping the struggling community members who approved this project to begin with?