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Fieldcrest Board rejects Wenona TIF extension
Wednesday, February 25, 2015 - Posted 9:57:12 PM
The Fieldcrest Board of Education voted to reject a request to renew the Wenona TIF district for another 12 years with board member Scott Hillenburg casting the only no vote. The Wenona TIF district was established in 1993 and will expire in 2016. The TIF district has diverted dollars away from the Fieldcrest school district to the City of Wenona during its run. The vote prevents the extension of the Wenona TIF district for another 12 years which means the Fieldcrest School District will collect property taxes at its full value from Wenona starting in 2016 which will add much needed money to the schools finances. In other news, the board debated on what to do with the Presbyterian Church which the school purchased several years ago. The church has fallen into disrepair and needs to be repaired. Initially, Board President Joe Kirkpatrick made a motion to tear down the church citing the expense needed to repair the building. However, board member Tim McNamara made a motion to delay the decision to tear down the church until May which will give the Board time to either sell the building or decide upon an alternative plan. Superintendent Dan Oakley made a presentation on possible solutions to solving the school's budget deficit. Mr. Oakley said the school currently has a $750,000 deficit that is mainly due to the State of Illinois' lack of promised funding to the school district. He said the problem stems from the fact that the school must have a budget in place before the State makes its budget known. The school makes a budget based on what the State says it will fund but then after the State completes its budget, the funds promised are not in the State's budget. Mr. Oakley presented 3 possible budget solutions that contained a combination of cuts and fee increases. The 3 proposals would result in a net surplus of $9,982, $66,958 and $18,071 respectively. Each proposal included cuts in teachers and curriculum. Board President Joe Kirkpatrick said 80% of the school's $13 million dollar budget is spent on personnel and the only way to cut costs is to cut personnel even though that is something the Board doesn't like doing. He said citizens should contact their State Representatives to let them know they disapprove of the way the State is cutting funding for education. He said the politicians will listen to voters more than they will school personnel. For a view of the proposed cuts prepared by Superintendent Oakley, click here. Board President Kirkpatrick urged people to provide feedback to the Board on their feelings on the budget proposals.
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