Dist. 57 hopefuls focus on finances

A revival of downtown Mount Prospect could help improve the financial condition of Mount Prospect Elementary District 57, one candidate said Wednesday night at a forum.

Meanwhile, none of the four candidates for three seats — Joe Sonnefeldt, Joseph Leane, Nick Papanicholas Jr., and Denny Composto — thought a tax increase request would pass now.

Unlike candidates for River Trails Elementary District 26 who are looking forward to more property taxes from the revitalized Randhurst Village, District 57 gets no tax dollars from that shopping center, Sonnefeldt said, and instead depends on residential property taxes. A revived downtown would help bring the district new tax dollars, he said.

Sonnefeldt was the only candidate who said the district must do better academically, while the rest said maintaining current standards of excellence is the challenge.

Being in the top 2 percent in a state that is in the bottom half nationally is not good enough, said Sonnefeldt, although the musician and music teacher did say $10,000-per-pupil costs make the district a “fantastic value” compared with others in the area.

Joseph Leane, the only incumbent and current president of the board, said when the economic climate changes the board might support a referendum for a tax increase.

Recent budget cuts that included laying off 24 teachers and making class sizes at some schools as large as 31 students while raising fees are the fourth phase of budget cutting since 2003, said Leane, an engineer.

“The current cuts do impact the classroom,” said Leane, adding that maintaining the long-term financial strength of the district is critical.

A recent survey shows the community will not support a property tax increase right now, Papanicholas said. That means revenues need to be increased in other ways, such as raising fees, and programs must be cut. But a $1.5 million to $2 million hole cannot be filled overnight, he said.

He said a tax increase will have to come in three to seven years.

“Sometime it’s going to have to happen. Parents expect academic excellence,” said Papanicholas, a general contractor who said he has worked with 15 to 20 school districts.

The board must show it’s fiscally prudent in maintaining its reserves before asking for a tax increase, said Composto, and he said his main concern is “we start to operate the school district within budget. The board has attempted to do that.”

Composto, an attorney, suggested cutting utility costs by lowering the thermostat in the winter and raising it in the summer, and he said perhaps maintenance services could be contracted out.

All the candidates supported the board’s decision to outsource bus service, especially because it saves money, although Sonnefeldt and Papanicholas said the decision was hastily made after a bus driver was found to be operating her bus while intoxicated. Leane said the cost savings will grow over the years.

None of the candidates disagreed with the board’s decision to move first-graders to Westbrook School.