Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Lakewood School Board votes to send a 3.9-mill operating levy to the Cuyahoga County Auditor’s Office Jan. 27 deadline for the May 7 election.
The Lakewood Board of Education took its first official step toward placing a 3.9-mill operating levy before voters in May. It wasn’t much of a surprise to board members, who’ve known for a while about the district’s financial woes, stemming from cuts in state funding and dwindling property values. The board agreed to pass a measure on first reading to file paperwork with the Cuyahoga County Auditor’s Office by its Jan. 27 deadline for the May 7 election. Superintendent Jeff Patterson recently told Lakewood Patch that the levy would cost owners of a $100,000 home $10 per month. “We’re very strategic about the 3.9 mills because we want to make sure we’re financial able to do things we want to do and keep the excellent programs we have now…
Friday, January 18, 2013
School board to review the proposal on Tuesday.
It won’t be a complete surprise to the Lakewood School Board that the administration is looking to put a 3.9-mill operating levy before voters on May 7. Board members have known for a while that some sort of financial assistance was needed to stop the bleeding from cuts in state funding and dwindling property values. The district made $4 million in cuts last year, however most of the layoffs were reversed in the fall. Superintendent Jeff Patterson is expected to formally introduce a measure to school board on Tuesday to place the operational levy on the ballot. He told Lakewood Patch on Thursday that the levy would cost owners of a $100,000 home $10 per month. “We’re very strategic about the 3.9 mills because we want to make sure we’re …
Friday, January 11, 2013
Board looks at the year ahead in a meeting that lasted more than four-and-a-half hours.
Members of the Lakewood Board of Education agree that a school levy is needed to secure the financial future of the Lakewood City Schools. But, there are still several details yet to be ironed out. Those details include what type of levy the district should ask Lakewood taxpayers for. It's also unclear how much the district will ask for. Or when. Board members began that discussion at a special four-hour school board meeting on Thursday. “As I’ve said in the past, we can either continue to make significant reductions to our staff, or we can put a measure on the ballot,” said Superintendent Jeff Patterson. John Larson, from Squire Sanders law firm, presented a few levy options to district officials. But the seems as if the board is …
Friday, November 9, 2012
New treasurer Timothy Penton presents the district’s financial outlook to the Lakewood School Board.
Just barely a month into his new job, Lakewood City Schools treasurer Timothy Penton already has his work cut out for him. Penton, who recently began the post full-time, presented the district’s proposed five-year financial forecast to the Lakewood School Board on Monday night. And, like other recent five-year forecasts, it revealed that the district is going to need some help if further cuts are to be avoided. “The bottom line is that the expenditures are forecast to exceed the revenue each year through fiscal year 2017,” Penton said told the school board on Monday. “The big picture is that home values are dropping and it is affecting our revenues.” In addition, the state slashed its local funding — to the tune of about $1.5 million in …
Shelley
8:53 pm on Sunday, January 20, 2013
18 years ago when I moved here from Strongsville and lost started paying 2 city income taxes as working in Cleveland and living in Strongsville I only had to pay once plus the increase in property tax it was to enjoy the charm and enjoy the short ride to work. Part of the decision of my purchase was knowing that being in my late 20's I would have a child and that the child would have a safe, … more ›