T.I. mulls closing Cape Vincent elementary

CLAYTON — The Thousand Islands Central School District is facing a $1.65 million shortfall in its 2010-11 operating budget and the district's budget committee is exploring "all options" — including staff cuts, terminating school programs and closing Cape Vincent Elementary School — to avoid a massive hike in tax levy.

A 1 percent increase in the tax rate generally would generate about $100,000 in revenue for Thousand Islands Central. In other words, the levy, or the amount to be raised through property taxes, would increase by more than 16 percent if the district does not cut back on spending.

"I wish I had better news," Superintendent Joseph A. Menard said. "We're looking at all options. One option is Cape Vincent Elementary."

However, he said, even if the district's budget committee deemed the closure necessary, the district would have to hold public hearings and conduct a feasibility study before it could close the school.

Mr. Menard said he personally is opposed to the closure of the district's second elementary school.

"Cape Vincent is a community school. It would destroy that community and it would be bad for the district in a long run," he said.

If the elementary school closes, the 110 students at Cape Vincent would have to travel more than 12 miles to either Guardino Elementary — a larger school in the same district with about 360 students — in Clayton or to the neighboring Lyme Central School District, Chaumont.

Mr. Menard said the district's roughly $20 million budget would, without spending cuts, increase by 3.1 percent, or $615,000 — mainly because of contractual pay increases and rising employee retirement costs and health-insurance premiums.

To make matters worse, he said, the proposed $1,030,000 state aid reduction might be the district's best-case scenario.

"There is no guarantee that state aid will not be reduced any further," he said. "We have to have an increase in the tax levy."

Last year, thanks to stimulus funding, the district was able to hold its tax levy steady while keeping all of its staff and programs.

The district Board of Education plans to reveal a preliminary budget Tuesday and formally adopt a budget April 20.

Mr. Menard will host an informal public meeting at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Cape Vincent Recreation Park, 602 S. James St.

The Board of Education will hold a community budget meeting at 7 p.m. March 30 in the Thousand Islands High School library, County Route 9. The budget hearing will be May 11 and the vote is May 18.