By Andrew Coen and paul wein
The two school board seats that were up for grabs were captured by private-school parents Michael Hatten of Cedarhurst and Uri Kaufman of Lawrence, giving the non-public-school community a majority on the board. Hatten defeated challenger Michael Brooks of Cedarhurst 5,365 to 3,673, and Kaufman beat Inwood's Tom Rizzo 4,882 to 4,300.
"I am going to represent the taxpayers of this district and all the children," Hatten said. "I'm going to be a trustee for everyone."
The $93.1 million budget proposal, a 5.3 percent hike over the current budget, fell 1,007 votes short of approval, with 3,580 yes votes and 4,587 no's. District officials and the current school board now must decide whether to offer the same plan, or a modified proposal, in a re-vote on June 20, or to adopt a contingency budget, which would allow for an overall increase of no more than 4 percent.
"I am very disappointed," said Lawrence Superintendent Dr. John Fitzsimons. "I'm not sure what the message is anymore. I give up."
The rejected budget would have meant a tax increase of $223.56 for the average District 15 homeowner, while a contingency plan would result in an increase only $21.19 less than that, according to school officials. If Lawrence is forced to operate on a contingency budget for another year, some student programs could be at risk, district officials have said.
Proposition 2 garnered 3,369 votes of approval, and 4,316 no's. Had voters approved the establishment of a capital reserve fund, district officials would have earmarked the potential $27.5 million they would reap from the sale of the former Number One School property for various building needs throughout the school system. The public still needs to approve Neuberg Development LLC's proposal to build condominiums on the site before the district will receive the funds.
The $2.5 million Peninsula Public Library budget proposal, a 3.4 percent increase, passed easily, 5,159 to 2,317. Current library trustees Janet Schneider of Woodmere and former PPL president Joel Shiff of Lawrence, ran unopposed and received 2,790 and 2,836 votes, respectively.
