Town, school budgets approved

Voters approved both the town and school budgets on Town Meeting Day Tuesday. The town’s $11.65 million budget with $9.6 million to be raised by taxes passed 781-435.

www.eagletimes.com

www.eagletimes.com

Springfield: Town, school budgets approved | March 07, 2018 By KATY SAVAGE Special to the Eagle Times SPRINGFIELD — Voters approved both the town and school budgets on Town Springfield Selectboard member Walter Matrone shows design plans for a new park outside the polls Tuesday in Springfield. — KATY SAVAGE Meeting Day Tuesday. The town’s $11.65 million budget with $9.6 million to be raised by taxes passed 781-435. The budget resulted in an estimated tax increase of 3.73 percent, mostly caused by health insurance rises and worker’s compensation and salary increases. The owner of a $100,000 home would pay an estimated $1,514 in taxes. The $30.4 million school district budget, including a $918,00 contribution to River Valley Technical Center, was up 1.4 percent from the previous year due to an increase in special education and the creation of new positions. The school tax rate increased 5.5 percent increase over the previous year—the first increase of its kind in at least four years. The sizeable increase came partly from a state funding shortfall, officials said. The tax rate was estimated at $1.56 per $100 of assessed property value. Both the town and school budgets reflect efforts to make Springfield more economically viable. While the selectboard looked to beautify the town, with a $239,000 revitalization fund for four downtown projects, the Springfield school directors focused on how to address behavioral issues. The school had plans to hire a new assistant principal, shared between Elm Hill School and Union Street Elementary School so principals could spend more time on education matters. The school board also planned to hire a behavioral internationalist at Riverside Middle School, a planning room teacher and new K-5 diagnostic teacher at Elm Hill along with two planning room instructional assistants at Union Street. School board member Jeanice Garfield, who has long been involved in early childhood education, said drug addiction, poverty and “family trauma” has caused problems in the schools. In some cases, children have destroyed part of the classroom, she said. “The children don’t know how to sit still, they don’t know how to listen to the teacher,” she said. Springfield School District chair Ed Caron said focusing on behavior in the early grades will create less challenges in the high school. The hope is that the new positions will also address Springfield’s declining test scores and declining number of students seeking higher education. Meanwhile, the town’s revitalization fund involves extending an existing park to the former Visiting Nurse Association building, demolished this past fall. The fund, created by voters last year, is part of a selectboard’s larger goal of making Springfield more attractive to private investors to reduce its soaring tax burden – averaging an uptick of 3 percent every year. The selectboard has targeted $7 million worth of possible improvements in a master streetscape plan. “The challenges is to grow the grand list,” said Selectboard Chairman Kristi Morris, who said the lack of businesses places the tax burden on residents. On Tuesday, voters also approved a $600,000 expenditure to pave 4.7 miles of roads. Incumbent school director Steve Karaffa was elected to a three-year term with 692 votes. He was elected along with newcomer Troy Palmer who had 656 votes. Karaffa and Palmer defeated Ryan Cooney with 608 votes. Cooney, 20, is a 2016 graduate of Springfield High School. He said the results were closer than he anticipated, given his age and experience. “I was pretty impressed because 608 votes does speak volumes of what this community was looking for,” he said. Palmer, 42, is a mechanical engineer who has two children – ages 8 and 10 – in the school system. Palmer said he wanted to serve because he was interested in making the school system better. Voters also elected selectboard incumbents Peter MacGillivray and Walter Martone to three-year terms. Matrone, 65, and MacGillivray, 75, ran unopposed. Matrone has served on the board for the past three years. He comes from the Silicon Valley area where he was deputy director of a public works department. MacGillivray, 75, is starting his seventh consecutive year on the selectboard. He is a retired pharmacist who grew up in Springfield. MacGillivray and Martone will serve with other selectboard members, including Stephanie Thompson, Michael Martin and Kristi Morris. Jennifer Dechen and Margie Reurink, who ran unopposed for library trustee seats, were also elected on Tuesday. Top2018News