For the second year in a row, the school budget was defeated on the first pass, while Joseph Magaraci, an incumbent trustee, defeated challenger Barry Leon in the 2023 school district vote.
David Lazar defeated Thomas Sargent for a vacant three-year term on the board.
“I want to thank the community,” Lazar told Echo late Tuesday night. “From what I was told this is the most combined votes ever in the community [for the school vote], which shows that a lot of people care and want their voices to be heard. The next step is: How do we take this to the next level and make the school community a more cohesive unit. It’s going to be a lot of work.”
Unofficial results:
Magaraci 1271
Leon 1263
Lazar 1289
Sargent 1210
School Budget defeated 1169 yes, 1370 no
Library Budget passed 1433 yes, 1026 no
The narrow defeat of the $74,125,176 budget — a 4.6 percent increase from last year — means that the district will have to hold hearings and set a revote in a few weeks’ time. The school district, in presenting the budget, noted that the required 1.99% tax levy increase is below New York State’s allowable tax cap, and below the median of seven surrounding districts.
Critics say the spending does not take into account plummeting enrollment in the district due to a high concentration of private school families.
The usually contentious election was tense this year with allegations of campaign signs being removed and dueling videos distributed to area residents in the final days.
Burt Blass, a current board member, said in a video urging a no vote that the budget is “way too high” and is “essentially the same budget adjusted for inflation going back to when we had 50% more students within the district. There ought to be some expense that would decrease in relation to the population we serve.”
In his own video Byars Cole, also a trustee, noted that the budgetary process was fully transparent and that another board member, who he did not name, only raised questions about it after it was completed.
“We go through the budget line by line,” Cole said. “There should be no question about where the money is going and what each line item is there for.” Cole noted that another budget vote “in and of itself will cost the district tens of thousands of dollars to stage … not to mention the stress that it puts on the community” and that “the message that sends is that we are not supporting our public schools, and that’s just not true.”
Cole said without the budget approval athletic clubs, AP classes, and transportation could be on the chopping block.
Blass said that while “kids do like” afterschool programs and other services that may be cut “there comes a point where you have to decide if you can afford to do that or not.” Blass said it was important to consider not only the students but to “Meet expectations of residents within the community who have to pay what it costs to run the system.”
Last year’s $71 million budget was approved on a revote on June 22 by a vote of 1,239 to 1,065. The budget cost taxpayers an additional 1.5% on their tax bill.
