WPCNR SCHOOL DAYS. By John F. Bailey. November 27, 2007: In its biweekly meeting last night, the Board of Education, approved in Executive Session a certiorari refund of $1,424,204 to Hillside Village Condominiums, Reckson Properties and T&J Realty following up its share of the certiorari settlement approved by the Common Council November 5.   The city refund of  $429,716 granted November 5, translated into a $1.4 Million refund out of the School District coffers Monday night, showing that for every $1 the city refunds in settling certiorari suits, the school district has to pay back about $3 to $4.

It dropped Reckson Properties at 140 Grand Street from $1,220,000 in assessed value to $1,050,000, granting a $166,023 refund over 7 years.

It lowered the assessment on Hillside Village Condominiums from $950,000 to $575,000, agreeing to a $219,298 refund.

 Assistant Superintendent for Business for the School District, Fred Seiler told WPCNR today, said part of the school district $1.4 Million pay back would come out of the district reserve for certiorari and another part of it from the bond the district executed last year for the certioraris but has not tapped yet.  Seiler said the city has scheduled certiorari settlements up for approval next week and in months following on a consistent basis, and Seiler expect more refunds to come.

In other budget news, Mr. Seiler wrote the Board of Education a memo about pressures on the 2008-2009 budget. Seiler said budget matters that would hit the 08-09 spending hard were the new teachers contract for 2008-2009, (the teachers are currently on a stopgap one-year contract that expires in June), the district self-insurance contract, and the health benefits package he said would cost the district 10-1/2% to 12% more.  Other factors WPCNR envisions are increased energy costs, the beginning of paying off the school construction bond (the first $20 Million which has not been offered to the financial markets yet). 

Last year the school district kept its budget to a 4.4% increase to $174.1 Million—it’s lowest year-to-year increase since 1998-99 when the budget was increased 3.43%

Superintendent of Schools Timothy Connors said the administration was going to school administrators next week to start formulating budgets, and he had told them “no new programs.” Sheryl Brady, a new member of the Board of Education raised the issue of adding more teachers to high school honors programs which she said often had 30 students in them. Connors said, in his 28 years experience as a Superintendent of Schools, it has always been his experience that schools will ask for more personnel, and it is his job to hold the line and say “No.” He said he would have the actual student totals in the honors classes at the high school to see what the facts were. He did not rule out an adjustment in honors course staffing. No one asked if perhaps too many students were being placed into the Honors courses.

Donna McLaughlin  said she did not want to say that new programs would not be considered, but that the question was what the tradeoff was, what the district would cut to start new programs.

Connors said the board would want to consider whether or not to present a Superintendent’s rollover budget  to the Annual Budget Committee prior to the first public meeting with the ABC Committee February 6.

The Board expressed concern about what the Equalization Rate was (2.69% -- a major .50 Drop from last year, which adversely affects the city assessment roll). Donna McLaughlin said it was not the city’s fault that the rate drops, and said it was important the School District explain to the public the effect Equalization Rate had on lowering the Tax Roll.