Bedford Budget Fails to Gain Enough Votes; Incumbents Fall
Leaders of the Bedford Central School District will have a lot of questions to answer at their next board of education meeting after the district’s $124.6 million budget that exceeded the tax cap fell just short.
The budget had support from 58.7 percent of voters – 2,595-1,821 – Tuesday night; however, because the spending plan’s levy exceeded the state’s tax cap it needed to gain 60 percent approval for passage.
All three board of education incumbents were defeated in close elections, likely due to the district’s budgetary problems. President Jennifer Gerken and trustees Suzanne Grant and Michael Solomon all lost their seats to their challengers.
Gerken was defeated by Michelle Brooks, Grant by Pam Harney and Solomon by Beth Staropoli. Unlike most other area districts, candidates in Bedford can only run for one seat.
Brooks defeated Gerken 2,169-2,047; Harney beat Grant 2,149-2051; and Staropoli outfinished Solomon 2,154-2,069.
Gerken and Grant declined to comment on the outcome, while Solomon did not attend Tuesday’s meeting. The three winning candidates were not immediately available for comment.
District leaders must now decide if they want to try a second vote on the proposed budget or an amended version or whether they will use the current year’s budget that would be adopted by default if a new budget cannot be passed.
The district is facing deep staff and program cuts as a result of an $8.8 million deficit that left trustees deeply divided over how to balance the budget. The proposed budget called for 18 teachers to be cut districtwide, including librarians in each of the five elementary schools. In addition to nearly $2.8 million in reductions, district officials also proposed a tax levy of 3.82 percent, nearly three times Bedford’s ceiling of 1.32 percent for next year.
The board also voted at its brief regular meeting to appoint current Fox Lane High School Principal Joel Adelberg as the new assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, replacing Andrew Patrick who headed to the Scarsdale Central School District.
Adelberg was given a four-year probationary contract with a salary of $213,115.
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