Sparta Board of Education has good news for taxpayers

Successful school bond sale at low interest rate means less tax impact, By Fran Hardy Sparta - Taxpayers will be squeezed less than anticipated when it comes time to pay the piper for the Sparta High School reconstruction project. At the regular board of education meeting Monday night, the board’s financial advisor, David Thompson of Phoenix Advisors, announced that at the Dec. 5 school bond sale, the winning bid was from the Prager Sealy Company at an interest rate of 4.28 percent, a lower rate than originally projected during the referendum process. This means that taxpayers will see slightly lower tax increases to pay for the bonds. During the referendum information sessions and in related publications, citizens were told the projected interest rate for the bond sale would be 5.1 percent. The example home, with the average assessed value of $300,000, would have felt a tax impact of an additional $431 per year. With the actual rate of 4.28 percent, the tax increase for this home will be $372, or approximately $59 less per year than originally projected. Taxpayers will feel no tax impact for 2007. The home in the previous example will be billed only an additional $15 for 2008. The full tax increase impact will not be felt by Sparta homeowners until fiscal year 2009. Tom Nuttle, a Sparta resident, said at Monday’s meeting that this is “excellent news for Sparta’s citizens.” He offered kudos to the board for the less than estimated cost for taxpayers. Board president Michael Schiavoni said Tuesday that he thought the new electronic bidding process used for the bond sale contributed to the favorable outcome. “The electronic process can be risky, but it allows bidders to see all other bids and allows them to be more aggressive, and creates more of a sense of competition,” Schiavoni explained. He also said that having “top-notch, really skilled people,” such as bond attorney Andrea Kahn, and Thompson, was “part of laying the foundation for success.” In other important news for residents, the board announced after a closed session discussion, that they have authorized Superintendent Dr. Thomas Morton to issue an offer to an interim business administrator, who could begin as early as next week. The candidate was described by Schiavoni as someone who lives locally and is highly qualified and very experienced. “We feel very fortunate to have someone of this caliber,” Schiavoni said. He added that he feels confident the board “will not miss a beat” in the school reconstruction process with this interim candidate. The person’s name was not released pending the offer. Some citizens still expressed concern over the hiring of an interim candidate when at least one permanent candidate, described by the board’s search committee as “highly qualified and viable,” expressed interest in the position. The committee recommended that the board postpone a permanent hire until the position is advertised again in January, in hopes of attracting a larger pool of candidates from which to choose. Sandra Curran said in the second public participation portion of the meeting, “It’s interesting that the board would hire an interim B.A. (during a long-term reconstruction project), yet permanent security guards for the high school (the majority of which will be demolished and renovated with state-of-the-art built in security).”