Area School Budgets Approved; P’ville’s $3.5M Bond Passes
By Janine Bowen and Adam Choy
The Pleasantville School District’s $47.4 million 2014-15 budget and $4,065,000 bond issue were comfortably approved Tuesday night, each by more than a 2-1 margin.
District voters approved the budget, with a 1.9 percent tax levy increase and a spending hike of nearly $1.1 million,740-333.
The bond, which passed 678-315, will pay for a variety of infrastructure upgrades across the district’s three schools, including new turf for the athletic fields, IT upgrades and a new roof at the middle school.
The bond is budget neutral because the district is completing payments on a previous $3.5 million bond and will use $565,000 from fund balance.
The final item on the ballot was the Veterans Tax Exemption advisory proposition, which voters supported 679-291. The exemption would grant a rebate for the qualified 234 veterans in the village. The tax break would be paid for by redistributing the difference among the remaining residents.
On May 27, the board of education will hold a special meeting and vote on whether to adopt the tax exemption, which will take effect for the 2015-16 school year.
Although there were four write-in candidates who received votes for school board, incumbent Louis Conte and newcomer Angela Vella were elected to trustee positions. Conte , who will be entering his second term, received 784 votes while Vella, who ran unsuccessfully in 2011 picked up 814 votes. They will serve three-year terms.
Chappaqua, Byram Hills Budgets Pass
The Chappaqua School District’s $116.8 million budget for the 2014-15 school year passed Tuesday night in a landslide, 848-193.
The budget contained a $2,028,900 spending increase (1.77 percent) over the current year.
Superintendent of Schools Dr. Lyn McKay said there are “great plans for the coming year.” The budget includes the addition of new faculty positions, including a student life coordinator. The district may also introduce new electives such as robotics and Chinese. In the future, the school board plans to expand the academic summer camp program offerings.
Also on the ballot this year was the uncontested election of two trustees. Incumbents Victoria Tipp and Karen Visser picked up 802 and 797, respectively.
Byram Hills voters approved that district’s $87.7 million budget 722-199. Incumbents Ira Schulman and Brett Summers were re-elected to the board of education in another uncontested race.
Adam has worked in the local news industry for the past two decades in Westchester County and the broader Hudson Valley. Read more from Adam’s author bio here.