Bethel Park School Board to vote on budget with no tax increase
Bethel Park residents’ property tax bills could remain the same for another year, at least for the school district portion.
The school board is expected to vote Tuesday on adopting the district’s $83.5 million budget for 2016-17 and holding the real estate tax rate steady at 22.8763 mills.
“We will consider a zero-mill tax increase for the first time in my 13 years on the board,” Donna Cook, board president, said at the June 21 committee meeting. “We are very pleased and proud.”
She credited administrators, including new Superintendent Joseph Pasquerilla, for finding ways to cut costs.
The district also benefited from refinancing about $72 million of debt, which was incurred seven years ago with the construction of the new high school. As a result of lower interest rates, Bethel Park will lower its debt service payments by about $420,000 annually.
The district also will eliminate some positions and combine others. The positions were vacant because of retirements, so the district is not expected to lay off any employees.
At the June 21 meeting, the board changed the status of two art teaching positions at Independence and Neil Armstrong middle schools. The teachers used to spend all their time at those schools, but now they will split their time between the middle schools and the high school. The board also eliminated a union custodian position.
Last month, the board eliminated seven positions, including human resources director, five teachers and two staff members.
At the June 28 regular meeting, the board also will consider approving about $22,000 worth of work at Benjamin Franklin Elementary School. Last month, the board approved contracts totaling $813,500 to replace the subfloor in the building. The additional work involves the installation of drain lines and to replace carpeting.
Board members expressed concern over the rising costs of the project, especially since the long-term future of the building is uncertain. Some board members discussed the possibility of closing the school, considering the extensive repairs that are needed and declining enrollment.
Originally, the district planned to replace the heating, air conditioning and ventilation system in the building, but a routine inspection revealed there were much more pressing concerns. The concrete subfloor is deteriorating because of water that has been seeping under the building for many years.
Contractors will now repair the subfloor and divert water from the building. Work on the HVAC system has been postponed indefinitely.
The repairs will be completed this summer, and some work will continue after the school year begins.
During the committee meeting, the board also received an update on the district’s cyber school, Bethel Park Online Academy. The district started offering the service a few years ago for students who are interested in an online educational program. At the time, Bethel Park was spending nearly $1 million to outside charter schools, and that amount has been reduced to about $600,000 because it was able to bring some of those students back to the district, said Brian Lenosky, director of alternative learning.
Bethel Park Online Academy’s budget stands at about $170,000 a year.
Some 130 students take classes in the online academy, most of whom are in high school. About 85 students attend full-time, while others take occasional classes online and returning to the traditional classroom.