School budgets ready ahead of May 17 vote

ELIZABETHTOWN | School Boards of Education throughout Essex County adopted 2022-23 spending plans to present to taxpayers on Tuesday, May 17. Here are budget numbers proposed in area school districts. AU SABLE VALLEY CENTRAL SCHOOL 2022-23 Proposed Budget: $34,977,108, a proposed increase in spending of 0.69 percent over last year. Total tax levy (amount to be raised by taxes): $15,193,500. The proposed levy reflects a 2.63 percent increase and is below the tax cap, which was set at 2.68 percent. School Board candidates, there are three seats open: Term A: Scott R. Bombard is running unopposed. Term B: Shannon O. Stanley is running unopposed. Term C: Jason S. Fuller and David B. Whitford are running for the seat. Propositions: None. Public Hearing Date: May 9 at 6 p.m. at the Middle/High School Budget Vote: Tuesday, May 17, polls open from 12 p.m. until 9 p.m. BOQUET VALLEY CENTRAL SCHOOL 2022-23 Proposed Budget: $15,194,000. Total tax levy (amount to be raised by taxes): $7,844,104. The BVCSD proposed budget is at the 2.68 percent tax cap allowance. Propositions: 1. To adopt the annual budget of the Boquet Valley Central School District. 2. To elect three members to the Board of Education for three-year terms. Choose three: Suzanne Russell, Phillip Mero, Heather Reynolds, Karen Brown. 3. Shall the Board of Education appropriate and expend $141,000.00 from the existing Transportation and Maintenance Equipment Capital Reserve Fund to purchase two (2) thirty-five (35) passenger school buses at a maximum cost of $141,000? 4. Shall the Board of Education appropriate and expend $35,000.00 from the existing Transportation and Maintenance Equipment Capital Reserve Fund for the purpose of purchasing one (1) sidewalk, driveway and lawn maintenance tractor at a maximum cost of $35,000? 5. Shall the Board of Education, pursuant to Education Law 259, be authorized to levy and collect an annual tax, year after year, separate and apart from the annual school district budget, $15,000 which shall be paid to the Westport Library Association, and $7,000 which shall be paid to the Wadhams Free Library, for the support and maintenance of the libraries? Public Hearing Date: Tuesday, May 10 at 6 p.m. at the Lake View Campus, Westport. Budget Vote: Tuesday, May 17, at Mountain View Campus, Elizabethtown. Polls open from 12 noon until 8 p.m. CROWN POINT CENTRAL SCHOOL 2022-23 Proposed Budget: $7,967,719, a proposed increase of 4.67 percent. Total tax levy (amount to be raised by taxes): $ 1,697,795. State Tax Cap Threshold the CPCSD proposed levy reflects a (minus) -1.51 percent decrease, which is at the tax cap threshold. School Board candidates: There are three seats open on the CPCSD School Board and three candidates running to fill them: Michael 'Mitch' St. Pierre (incumbent), Anita Johnson (incumbent) and Jodie Ingleston. Propositions: None. Public Hearing Date: May 10 at 7 p.m. at Crown Point Central School. Budget Vote: Tuesday, May 17, polls open from Noon until 8 p.m. KEENE CENTRAL SCHOOL 2022-23 Proposed Budget: $7,680,182. Total tax levy (amount to be raised by taxes): $6,151,543. Tax Levy Cap was set at 8.02 percent, and the proposed budget is at the cap. School Board: Two School Board seats are open and incumbents Jen Kazmierczak and Molly Jacobson are both seeking reelection for the three-year terms. Propositions: None. Public Hearing Date: Monday, May 9 at 6:30 p.m. in the KCS Auditorium. Budget Vote: Tuesday, May 17, at the KCS Main Entrance. Polls are open Noon to 8 p.m. LAKE PLACID CENTRAL SCHOOL 2022-23 Proposed Budget: $20,911,744, a proposed increase of 0.87 percent. Total tax levy (amount to be raised by taxes): $16,675,694. Tax levy threshold set for LPCSD was (minus) -0.2053 percent, and the proposed levy is at the tax cap. School Board: Two seats are open and Rick Preston and Bryan Liam Kennelly are not seeking re-election. Four candidates are on the ballot: Douglas Lansing, Beth Brunner, Ronald Briggs and Colleen Skufca. Four propositions on the ballot include: 1. Vote on the school budget. 2.To authorize LPCSD to lease two 66-passenger school buses for a period not to exceed five (5) years at a cost not to exceed $44,200 per year. 3. Wilmington Library Proposition: to increase funding by $620 annually for the E.M. Cooper Memorial Public Library. Levy would go from $15,470.00 to $16,090 per year. 4. To fund the Repair Reserve Fund established by the LPCSD Board of Education on March 22, 2022, by transfer of up to $1,000,000 from budgetary appropriations and/or unreserved fund balance and use amounts in Repair Reserve Fund, including any investment earnings therein, for the following within the District: site, building and athletic field improvements, furnishings, equipment, machinery, apparatus, updates to school alarm systems, all necessary costs incidental to such work. Public Hearing Date: May 10 at 6 p.m. in the Lake Placid Board of Education Conference Room. Budget Vote: Tuesday, May 17, polls open 2 p.m. until 9 p.m. at the Lake Placid Elementary School Cafeteria (for Lake Placid residents), and from 2 p.m. until 9 p.m. at the Wilmington Community Center (for Wilmington residents). MORIAH CENTRAL SCHOOL 2022-23 Proposed Budget: $19,778,674, an increase of 11.11 percent in spending. Total tax levy (amount to be raised by taxes): $4,082,000. The proposed levy reflects a 0 (zero) percent increase, which is below the 5.84 percent tax cap threshold set by the state. School Board candidates: There are three three-year terms open on the School Board and one one-year term. Candidates on the ballot are Anthony Harlow, Michael Celotti, Dana Gilbo and Benjamin Winters. Proposition: One proposition to purchase two student transportation vehicles at a cost not to exceed $277,900. Public Hearing Date: Tuesday, May 10 at the Middle/High School, 6 p.m. Budget Vote: Tuesday, May 17 at Moriah Middle/High School. Polls open from 1 p.m. until 8 p.m. SARANAC LAKE CENTRAL SCHOOL 2022-23 Proposed Budget: $34,600,000, a proposed increase of 2.67 percent. Total tax levy (amount to be raised by taxes): $23,264,920. The State Tax Cap Threshold for SLCSD was set at 2.44 percent, and the proposed levy is at the tax cap. School Board candidates, three seats open: One member of the Board of Education to one three-year term commencing May 17, 2022 and expiring June 30, 2025. One member of the Board of Education to one three-year term commencing July 1, 2022 and expiring June 30, 2025. And one member of the Board of Education to one one-year term, commencing May 17, 2022 and expiring June 30, 2023. Four candidates are running for School Board: Zachary Randolph, Mark Farmer, Tori Thurston and Paul Herrmann Propositions: Proposition I, To purchase three buses and authorize the expenditure of an amount not to exceed $395,000 and authorize the use of up to $395,000 from the Saranac Lake Central School District's unassigned fund balance to pay for the transportation vehicles in full. Proposition II, Saranac Lake Free Library tax levy, authorizing the SLCSD Board of Education to levy taxes annually in the sum of $356,092 and pay to the Trustees of the Saranac Lake Free Library for general operating funds. Public Hearing Date: Wednesday, May 4 at 5 p.m. at the Saranac Lake High School. Budget Vote: Tuesday, May 17, polls open at the High School at 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. WILLSBORO CENTRAL SCHOOL 2022-23 Proposed Budget: $10,479,884. Total tax levy (amount to be raised by taxes): $5,863,165. Tax Levy Cap: The proposed WCS budget is at the 2.69 percent tax levy cap. The projected tax rate will increase 37-cents over the current budget to $12.64 per thousand dollars of real property value. School Board candidate: One open seat and incumbent Kasey Young is seeking reelection. Propositions: Proposition One is for the budget. Proposition Two is for a capital project to replace the school's fire alarm system in the amount of $455,500. And Proposition Three is for the School Board seat. Public Hearing Date: Tuesday, May 10 at 6 p.m. at the school. Budget Vote: Tuesday, May 17 from Noon until 8 p.m. in the school auditorium.

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School budgets ready ahead of May 17 vote

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