School board adopts budget
Residents will vote May 15 on proposal, which contains 3.93% tax-levy increase
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. » Saratoga Springs City School District’s Board of Education unanimously voted to adopt a 2018-19 budget proposal Tuesday night.
The $125.9 million budget proposal includes a tax-levy increase of 3.93 percent, which fits under the tax cap for the district. The tax-levy cap for the district is 7.41 percent. District residents will vote on the proposed budget May 15.
The total amount of the proposed budget proposal represents a 2.66 percent increase compared to the 2017-18 budget, which is about $122.7 million.
The discussion over the past couple of weeks centered on state aid and whether to increase the rise in the tax levy to 4.18 percent, which would reduce reliance on the fund balance, or use more fund balance to balance the budget without going over a 4 percent tax-levy increase. The district received more than $200,000 than expected in state aid, which means the district reduced the reliance on fund balance from $8,853,788 to $8,544,374 and settled on a 3.93 tax levy increase.
According to estimates from the district, under the proposed budget a property assessed at $100,000 would see an increase of roughly $44.46 in its school tax bill.
Saratoga Springs City School District lost $3.3 million in building aid, which assistant superintendent for business Tim Hilker said has been the biggest challenge developing this budget.
The associated debt that’s tied to the capital projects that generates the building aid will retire in two years. Administrators project a -0.91 percent tax levy cap in two years.
In the early 2000s, capital projects were done. The building aid is dropping off for those projects, but the debt associated with the projects still remains, which creates a resulting gap between where the building aid stops and the debt retires. About $6.5 million of fund balance and reserves were appropriated last year. Hilker explained how, in order to balance the budget, an additional $2 million, partly from fund balance and partly from reserves, was used to offset the loss of building aid.
Over $465,000 worth of program proposals shape up the top priority additions, which are included in the budget proposal. Overall, there was over $1.1 million in budget proposals.
The top priority program proposals call for adding five full-time teachers and two teacher assistants for students with special needs.
In addition to the budget, voters will determine the fate of the Great Outdoors Project on May 15.
The $15.6 million project would make improvements at several buildings and parks in the city. Officials have said no tax increase will be needed to fund the project.
Approximately 27 percent of the project is expected to be covered by state aid. The remaining $11.4 million would be financed largely through an existing Capital Reserve Fund — essentially a district savings account — and borrowing money. Officials said though the district will be issuing debt, it will merely replace existing debt that is due to expire.
The proposal calls for outdoor improvements and renovations to the school district’s eight school buildings as well as districtowned Gavin Park, East Side Recreation Park and West Side Recreation Park.
If approved, construction documents are scheduled to be finalized from June through November 2018, and then be followed by a state Education Department review. Construction could then start before fall 2019 with full construction possibly completed by summer 2021. The potential project timeline says a second summer or additional time may be required depending on impact to facilities.
Aside from improvements to playgrounds, fields and courts, some schools would get outdoor learning environments.
The plan includes irrigation for some fields, LED lighting in gymnasiums and completed perimeter fencing at some sites.
The lighting in gymnasiums expects to save the city approximately $26,000 per year while reducing electricity consumption by 74 percent in those spaces, officials said.
Some improvements — and the estimated total cost for the work at the site — include: • High school — upgrade bathroom and concessions building, improve storage, irrigation at all fields and add a multi-use turf field; $2.9 million total cost.
• Maple Avenue Middle School — develop courtyard outdoor learning, library patio extension fencing at the soccer field and irrigation at all fields; $354,500.
• Caroline Street Elementary School — develop outdoor learning classrooms and LED lighting in the gym; $45,000.
• Dorothy Nolan school — remove relocatable classrooms, add storage, create an outdoor pavilion and add two new playgrounds/ swings; $582,000.
• Gavin Park — add paved entry road and provide parking off entry road; $300,000.
• Geyser Road school — upgrade playground, provide a nature trail with learning components and interpretive signage; $232,000.
• Lake Avenue school — add a garden planting wall at the sidewalk and improve the gymnasium; $156,250.
• Greenfield school — add an outdoor learning space, complete perimeter fencing, improve parent/bus drop off and add outdoor pavilion; $273,700.
• East Side Rec — add turf baseball infield, renovate stadium seating, new basketball fencing, new entrance and pathways, lighting for the tennis and basketball courts, and new perimeter fencing; $4.45 million.
• West Side Rec — upgrade upper storage building, replace perimeter fencing, replace playground equipment, replace freshman baseball scoreboard, add new equipment at splash area and wall pads at upper storage exterior; $547,500.