Special meeting just weeks before new board members take office has rightly angered community
By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times
CALN — Elections, they say, have consequences.
That’s why it’s a little disturbing to see the Coatesville Area School District Board of Education in a seeming rush to buy a building for new administration offices.
You see, in little more than a couple of weeks at least three new school board members will be sworn in to office, so it seems a little strange that a deal that locks those folks into paying millions for a new building over the next few years won’t give them the opportunity to vote on the matter.
There’s a whole host of reasons why you could argue against the purchase, from the state of the district’s finances to reasonably questioning whether the district really has the managerial wherewithal to get into the health care business, when it is evident over the last few months, that this board and administration can’t manage education or even their own personal conduct, let alone new ventures totally outside of their expertise.
In their defense, they’ll tell you that the Benner Administration Building — the old high school — is a money pit. And that health care costs — which by the way, in neighboring districts have either held fairly steady or slightly decreased in the last year or so — are bankrupting the district. And yes, standing outside of the building Monday, it seems like a very nice building, not far from the high school campus.
Maybe that’s all true. And I have to say “maybe” because this board has slightly less credibility than the guy who makes the “Shamwow” commercials. Of course, that’s how it goes when you have a grand jury looking into your conduct.
And even with giving the board the benefit of the doubt that all these are legitimate issues, why the rush?
If this is the obviously right move, the new board members would — if shown the reasoning behind the deal — immediately jump at the chance, right? It’s not like commercial real estate is really selling right now — and Thorndale has been kind of a particularly struggling area — so it’s not like this building is going to be sold tomorrow if the district doesn’t leap. An extra downside: buying the building cuts the tax base of the district (and Caln Township), and it seems unlikely that Benner, if ever sold, will come close to replacing it, meaning a permanent loss of real estate tax income for the township, school district and county, some of which will have to be made up for with higher taxes.
This is an educated guess, but, I’m thinking that there aren’t five votes among the new board members to support this little venture, which makes the purchase highly suspect — and has already led to new expressions of public anger at this board.
Residents and parents have asked, rightly, how the district expects to pay for this building at a time when education programs are being cut — and the district faces a spike in pension costs in the coming years, without even the wiggle room to raise taxes much, thanks to the Act 1 Index.
We keep being told that capital expense money is different from operating expense money, which is more than a little disingenuous. Even if the money were sitting in an account from a previous bond issue, maybe it makes more sense to use it to pay down the ongoing debt service, rather than max out the credit card.
Whatever this is — and it’s not entirely clear — it is the exact opposite of being fiscally conservative. Or responsible. Or transparent.
It also strikes me (among others) as odd that a district that needed a tax anticipation note to open the 2013-14 school year (the school district equivalent of a payday loan) has the cash lying around to buy a building. And just out of curiosity: we’ve been looking for payments on that tax anticipation note, which comes due to PNC Bank on Dec. 15, and haven’t seen any in the check registry, which is a little worrisome.
As bad as things are, having the district run out of money in April — under the terms of the tax anticipation note, state funds automatically go to the bank until the note is repaid — and a state takeover of the school district would be an unmitigated disaster.
Add in the fact that starting its own health care facility is a spectacularly bad idea — partnering with any number of local providers who actually know what they’re doing would have been a smarter course — and once again it sure seems like the whole venture makes no sense whatsoever.
Combined with the rushed nature of this move and it’s hard to blame residents and parents for feeling like they’re being dumped on again, with no accountability from their elected officials.
This Board of Education needs to slow down, let its newly elected members take office, and start being frank about the financial shape of the district with residents, parents and taxpayers.
Tabling this purchase Tuesday night would be a good start.
It would be nice if the writer would know the rules
First, even with three new board members voting no, the vote would be 6-3 and it still would’ve passed. Second, I haven’t heard the grand jury is looking into the board at all. It’s been about employees. Third, you say there aren’t five votes among the new board members, but if there’s only three new board members, how do they get five votes? Next, you can’t use bond money to pay down debt service. If you don’t use the bond for the purpose it was taken out, you pay a huge penalty on the remaining funds. How will the building be paid for?? With the bond money which was already taken out and which the district is already paying for. It’s not new money or a new loan. And, once again, you find it odd that the district needs a tax anticipation note but “has cash laying around to buy a building”. Again, you can’t use bond money to pay operating expenses. A point you made yourself.
Its sad that our children are in need in all of the schools in the CASD, we have buildings falling apart, no heat..or not enough heat, no AC, mold to the point that the caln nurse keeps inhalers in her office, 36+ kids in a class! not enough books to the point kids in every class share the same books and none can be taken home! they have a shortage of paper in every school! we are housing classes in temporary modulars, missing doors in bathroom stalls, potholes on school roadways….this money could be better spent by all means!!! This is a payback for our election!
The current school should wait until the new board members have taken their seats on the board. With so much negatively going on now it is time to stop and refocuses on what has happened over the last months. The prospection the board is giving is they do not care about the students. There are several schools that need major work or need to be rebuilt so no money should be spent on buying a new administration building. Fix what ever needs to be done at Benner.
Thank you for a solid editorial piece. YesYesYesYes to every point you made and to all the comments so far.
My mistake, The Benner Building is on Lincoln Highway not Lancaster Ave. Thanks to Ak for pointing out my error. I stand by the rest of my comments.
There should not be $1 more spent on administration or the football team until the newly elected school board members take office, and they and the taxpayers have a chance to look at the finances of the district. Again this smacks of a hustle by the board to proceed with their own agendas no matter what the people who elected them want. Certainly this again shows the boards lack of respect for the students and parents who have suffered at the hands of corrupt and morally bankrupt administrators and school board members. This board has shown that they are willing to push through their own misguided agendas without taking into consideration the students, teachers and taxpayers they are supposed to be representing. Is this a purchase that has been recommended by the school district Solicitor Ellison? An attorney who has already been censored by the Pa. Bar Association, and who the Chester County DA has specifically stated should not be representing the district and is under investigation for his role in missing and misappropriated funds but continues to “advise” and bill the district for exorbitant legal fees,while still having the unmitigated gaul to sit up on the stage during board meetings?? Does this purchase also have a connection to someone on the board, like the proposed Sadsbury purchase did. It is obvious that this board has not learned anything from the last several months and is still making decisions based on their own misguided judgements!! At the very least no purchase should be made until there is a buyer lined up to purchase the Benner building. The last thing the City of Coatesville and the district needs is another abandoned building added to Lancaster Ave. For far too long too many dollars have been spent by administrators and the school board on their own personal favorite projects. The time has come to put an end to this shameful and criminal behavior. It’s a shame that the people who work for the district at the Benner Building don’t have “adequate air conditioning in an older building”. Maybe it’s time for them to have to do with out, like the student academic programs, and teachers have had to for the last several years. If the people who are left in the administration have any integrity remaining after keeping silent about Como for so long they should refuse to move to a new administration building. Until all of the financial investigations are completed and the district is finally put on the track to it’s main purpose,academic success. Our district should be known for the students it sends to colleges and trade schools, not for football and basketball teams that represent only a small portion of the district’s students and are only sparatically successful with some athletes who are not academically eligible to play with out falsifacation of academic and attendance records. Until that change is put in effect we will always be known as the least desirable and most misguided school district in Chester County!
Shamwow. Good point & funny too! This certainly seems quite rushed. we’re starting our own healthcare facility? Wondering if any ohter school districts have done this? how have they made out? And yes– on a completely different side note..I hope the Grand Jury and /or anyone else out there that can push it through initiate a FORENSIC AUDIT OF CASD’s finances.
Thank you.
Benner is not the old high school, Scott was. Benner was an elementary school.
benner was the original high school before scott and then became elementary when scott opened
Benner was the High School first, starting 1915. Scott became Coatesville High School in 1940.