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East Allen County School board members will continue their on-again, off-again considerations of closing schools that began more than two decades ago. Just months after former Superintendent Kay Novotny outlined options, new Superintendent Karyle Green will give her own recommendations for a district reorganization along with costs associated with the alternatives.
The district’s five high schools have long been one or two too many, but school board members have repeatedly refused to close any of them. Now, though, the board faces a $10 million deficit in its budget and must make significant cutbacks.
Board members cannot even agree on whether they have rejected an option that would close Paul Harding High School or whether it remains on the table. Novotny’s proposal also included closing New Haven Middle School and either Monroeville Elementary or Hoagland Elementary.
Any plan that includes closing a neighborhood school will likely draw some opposition, but the district clearly has too many schools. In addition to cost savings, school board members must also consider the racial disparities in their schools.
Two other school districts will talk money this week.
Southwest Allen County Schools will hold a public hearing on its proposed 2010 budget on Tuesday. The district is proposing a budget that has about a 1.6 percent increase over the 2009 spending plan. The board will likely give final approval of the budget on Oct. 20.
Northwest Allen County Schools is expected to adopt its 2010 budget at its board meeting today. The district already held a public hearing on the $59.5 million budget, which is a 3.3 percent increase over the 2009 budget.
City Council members will begin discussing a bond to finance the purchase and renovation of the 200 E. Berry St. property, also known as Renaissance Square.
In August, the council approved purchasing the property for $7.3 million and spending about $7.2 million for renovations. City and county leaders are still reviewing the recommendations they received last week from a committee on possible plans for the use of the space.
Council members may use the forum to give their own opinions about which services should be in Renaissance Square and which should be in the City-County Building.
Mayor Tom Henry is also asking the City Council to designate the city as a recovery zone under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The recovery zone designation would allow the city to go after government incentives to borrow the money.
The council will also hold a public hearing on the city’s 2010 proposed budget and continue its budget reviews. Liz Brown, chair of the finance committee and the member in charge of overseeing the budget discussions, has asked to hear from all department heads who oversee departments with budgets of $500,000 or more.
On Tuesday, City Clerk Sandy Kennedy will present the proposed budgets for the City Clerk’s office, City Council and parking administration. On Thursday, the council will review budgets for the Metropolitan Human Relations Commission, the Parks and Recreation Department and public works departments, including the street department, traffic engineering, fleet management and energy and environmental management department.
