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Carmichaels OKs tentative budget

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CARMICHAELS – Carmichaels Area School Board approved a tentative 2013-14 budget Thursday that calls for increasing property taxes by 0.7 of a mill to pay for debt service on bonds for the district’s school renovation project.

The $15,771,000 proposed budget is 3.13 percent greater than the current budget. If adopted next month, it will increase the district’s property tax levy from 22.05 mills to 22.75 mills.

The revenue raised will be dedicated to paying debt payments for the renovation project, business manager Amy Todd said. Debt service is expected to increase next year by about $100,000.

In addition to debt payments, the budget also projects increases in retirement costs, which will jump about $200,000; Intermediate Unit services for cyber school and the addition of an English as second language program, $150,000; and health insurance costs, which will increase about $30,000.

One area the district could see a savings is for teacher salaries. Thirteen teachers will retire and will be replaced by new teachers at lower salaries.

The board also voted Thursday to refinance bonds issued for the construction of the elementary school, which could save about $100,000, Todd said. The school was constructed in 1991 and the original bonds were initially refinanced in 2008.

The proposed 0.7 tax increase is the maximum the district is allowed under the inflationary index established under the Taxpayer Relief Act.

This year, property owners eligible for the homestead or farmstead exception will be able to subtract $229.35 from their property tax bill.

In other business, the board approved a new contract for cafeteria management with Sodexo, a company which was the district’s cafeteria manager for several years. It also approved a cafeteria budget of $585,872.

The board approved retirement notices from elementary teachers Barbara Brant, Susan Frye and Deborah Bristor and English and French teacher Rose Gabeletto. Each will retire at the end of this school year.

The board hired Roberta Barr for the position of test coordinator, homeless liaison and school counselor.

Superintendent Craig Baily asked the board and district residents for patience regarding regular maintenance of school grounds. Maintenance staff was busy moving items out of storage in the junior high school in anticipation of renovation work that will begin there this summer, he said.

The junior-senior high renovation project began last month with excavation for the new cafeteria and kitchen below the underpass between the two buildings. The work has not impacted the use of the buildings for classes.

Baily assured the board the interiors of the buildings remain clean, safe and in proper order.

At the end of the school year, the junior high will be turned over to contractors after everything is removed from it.

The board discussed whether additional staff will be needed to remove all the desks, cabinets and other materials from the building to allow the contractor to begin work as soon as possible.

Asked about parking for graduation, considering the space now lost to construction activities, acting assistant Superintendent John Menhart said it is being discussed and possibly shuttle buses will be used to bring people to the school from the Carmichaels Fire Hall parking lot.

Next school year, while the junior high is being renovated, mobile classrooms will be used for classes that can’t be accommodated in the high school. After the junior high is finished, work will begin on the high school.

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