Update: School Budget Voting Ends at 9 P.M.

7:40 p.m., May 17: Voters continued streaming into New Rochelle High School Tuesday evening to cast their ballots on the $231 million school budget and elect two new board members.

Traffic was much lighter at Jefferson Elementary School.

By 6 p.m., 2,708 votes had been registered district-wide, said spokesman Paul Costiglio.

Polls close at 9 p.m. It may be a couple of hours before the unofficial results are known.

---------------

4:30 p.m., May 17: As of 3 p.m. Tuesday, the total number of voters was 1,859, compared to 1,634 last year at the same time, according to New Rochelle School District spokesman Paul Costiglio.

---------------

3:20 p.m., May 17: As voting continues in New Rochelle Tuesday for the school and library budgets and trustees, a steady trickle of residents entered Isaac E. Young Middle School's new gymnasium to vote.

As of noon, a little over 1,100 votes had been cast, according to district spokesman Paul Costiglio.

He said there have been no problems at the polls, with two voting machine technicians on standby.

Costiglio said, as of noon, some voting districts were ahead of last year, but on the whole voting was steady.

Denise Rossetti of New Rochelle brought her mother to Isaac Young Middle School so she could vote.

Rossetti was then heading to her polling place.

"I think that the issue residents are really concerned about is about taxes," she said.  "The school part is the largest" portion of the tax bill.

Rossetti said it was a tough balancing act between "great programs, keeping qualified teachers, yet maintaining a fiscally sound budget."

She acknowledged that unfunded state mandates are a problem for the district.

"But whenever we go to meetings, we hear about cutting the arts, but we never hear about cutting from the top," Rossetti said.

Polls will be open until 9 p.m.

---------------

Voters will decide Tuesday whether to approve a $231 million budget for 2011-12, as well as electing two new board members.

Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 9 p.m.

The adopted budget is 2.66 percent more than the 2010-11 budget and represents a 4.5 percent increase in the tax rate.

New Rochelle School District Superintendent Richard Organisciak said, in putting together the spending package, the district had to overcome a reduction in funding from the state totaling almost $6.4 million, along with an increase in payments to state pension systems.

"The key word we are using is 'preserve,' " he said, adding that he and his staff worked hard to leave the major programatic components intact.

Some of what the district was able to continue included full-day kindergarten, full athletic programs, all extracurricular and co-curricular activities and all high school electives.

Organisciak said the budget eliminates 79.5 positions district-wide. He said the number of actual layoffs that will happen is as yet unknown.

"It continues to drop," he said, and is now down to 34.

"People are still making decisions," Organisciak said, about situations such as whether to retire.

Should voters decide to reject the budget, the district can modify the budget package and put it up for another vote, put the same budget up for a second vote or go directly to a contingency budget.

In event of the latter, or if voters reject the budget a second time, the contingency budget would trim an additional $1 million.

"It would bring (the tax rate) down from 4.5 percent to 4.27 percent," Organisciak said.

A contingency budget could mean more loss of programs and staff, outside organizations would have to pay to use district facilities and no new equipment could be purchased.

While the adopted budget restored a modified plan to continue providing busing to private school students, Organisciak said that might have to be reconsidered if the district goes to a contingency budget.

"It will be a question of what the community is saying to us then," he said.

Budget Highlights

• A zero percent increase in salary for Federation of United School Employees members.
• A salary freeze for the superintendent, assistant superintendents, managerial and confidential unit members.
• Elimination of the assistant superintendent-human resources position.
• A reduction of $850,000 in the transportation budget.
• A cut of more than $485,000 in supplies and maintenance.

School Board Candidates

• Rachel Relkin
• Naomi Brickel
• Robert Cox
• Peter O'Keeffe
• Dr. Salvador A. Fernandez.

There are two five-year terms open on the board of trustees. Click on the names to read profiles of the candidates.

Library Budget Vote

Registered voters will have a chance to approve a $4.5 million budget for 2011-12 for the New Rochelle Public Library. There are two candidates for the board of trustees who are running unopposed.

For more information, see this article.

Voting

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. If there are questions about where to vote, call the clerk and secretary to the Board of Education at 914-576-4219. The following are the poll locations:

SED #1
Henry Barnard School
129 Barnard Road – Gymnasium

SED #2
Columbus Elementary School
275 Washington Avenue – Gymnasium

SED #3
George M. Davis, Jr. Elementary School
80 Iselin Drive – Gymnasium

SED #4
Jefferson Elementary School
131 Weyman Avenue – Gymnasium (Emmett Terrace Entrance)

SED #5
Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center
95 Lincoln Avenue – Dining Hall

SED #6
New Rochelle High School
265 Clove Road – Auditorium Lobby (Clove Road Entrance)

SED #7
Trinity Elementary School
180 Pelham Road – Gymnasium

SED #8
Albert Leonard Middle School
25 Gerada Lane – Auditorium Lobby

SED #9
Daniel Webster Elementary School
95 Glenmore Drive – Gymnasium

SED #10
Isaac E. Young Middle School
270 Centre Avenue – Gymnasium

SED #11
Holy Name School
Halligan Street, Halligan Hall

SED #12
William B. Ward Elementary School
311 Broadfield Road – Cafeteria (Rear Entrance)

SED #13
570 Fifth Avenue – Community Room