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A special day for young athletes
Photos by David Tyler
Hundreds of special athletes came to Fayetteville-Manlius High School on Thursday, June 6 for the Onondaga County Olympiad. The event was kicked off with a parade of athletes around the track, which preceded a host of athletic events throughout the day. Students from many local school districts, including Cazenovia, participated in the event. Pictured are the group from Cazenovia in the parade of athletes. TOP RIGHT: Luke Clonin, a 10th grader from Cazenovia, is all smiles as he makes his way down the track in the 50-meter sprint. BOTTOM RIGHT: Ian Decker, a 12th grader from Cazenovia, is all determination as he begins the 50-meter race.
Revised school budget going to revote June 18 Town adopts revised commercial mobile service facilities law By kate Hill Staff Writer
Eligible voters in the Cazenovia Central School District (CCSD) are asked to head to the polls on Tuesday, June 18, to weigh in on a revised 2024-25 school budget proposal. The new $38,427,222 budget proposal carries an estimated 4.02 percent tax levy increase and represents a 5.19 percent increase over the 2023-24 budget. On May 21, voters rejected CCSD’s original $38,826,826 spending proposal by 34 votes. The district’s original plan was to maintain academic and support programming while closing this year’s budget gap with an estimated 5.84 percent tax levy increase, the use of $1,641,005 in fund balance, some restored state aid, and $399,295 in spending cuts, including the use of attrition and restructuring of several BOCES services. Two days after the budget proposal was defeated at the polls, the CCSD Board of Education reviewed new recommendations from the district. Ultimately, the board decided on a revised budget proposal that is at the district’s calculated tax levy limit of 4.02 percent and includes a reduction of $399,604 compared to the rejected proposal. Because the revised budget proposal does not exceed the tax levy limit, it will require a simple majority vote — 50 percent + 1 — for authorization rather than the supermajority — 60 percent or more — needed for the previous budget proposal to pass.
A May 27 message to the CCSD community explains that to reduce the budget by $399,604, the district has proposed cutting a reading teacher and an instructional coach and reducing athletics and technology. The message notes that the district has fewer participating employees in its health insurance, which results in a cost reduction. “We are thankful to all who came out in support of our school budget,” Superintendent Christopher DiFulvio said in the message. “We recognize we are in challenging financial times, which is why we asked students and their families, district staff, and community members for their input as we created the proposal voters weighed in on. Unfortunately, our students will feel the impact of a reduction in program and services as we work to develop a new budget proposal that is at the district’s calculated tax levy limit.” The district message also acknowledges that over the past year, CCSD has been recognized as the top-performing school in Central New York for its English Regents exam scores, ranked among the top high schools by US News & World Report, and named one of the nation’s best communities for music education. “Our students perform at high levels, and we want to continue offering programs that make our community proud and Cazenovia a desirable place to live,” said DiFulvio. Under state law, if voters reject the new budget proposal on June 18, the board of education must enact a contingency budget, requiring an additional $885,248 in cuts.
“This would involve limiting the number of athletes on certain teams, reducing to no more than two teams per program, and cutting a second instructional coach, an assistant principal, [a school resource officer], a second world language teacher, its second [Career & Technical Education] teacher in three years, physics, astronomy, theater courses, the orchestra program, music electives, all teacher-leader positions, and 20 percent of extracurricular activities,” the May 27 message states. The district would also have to eliminate the public use of its facilities, making such uses allowable on a charge basis only. “We certainly don’t want to think about a contingency budget, but it is a reality,” said DiFulvio. “I worry about the impact this would have on our youth programs, our seniors who use the buildings for walking, and the overall feel of our community. Our schools are the center of everything we do in Cazenovia.” The public was invited to learn more about the revised 2024-25 budget proposal during a school budget hearing on Tuesday, June 11, in the high school cafeteria. On June 18, the polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. in the middle school auxiliary gymnasium, 31 Emory Ave. The school budget re-vote date is the same day as the Village of Cazenovia Board of Trustees elections, which will be held at the Cazenovia American Legion from noon to 9 p.m. “The statewide re-vote day for all school districts that had a budget voted Budget l Page 15
By kate Hill Staff Writer
On June 10, the Cazenovia Town Board adopted a local law to amend the town code with regarding commercial mobile service facilities (telecommunications towers). Before adopting the statute, the board held a public hearing. No comments were made. “The Town of Cazenovia acknowledges the need, demand, and national policy supporting the availability of commercial mobile services to the public,” the local law states. “Similarly, the town recognizes the valid concerns and interests its residents have in the aesthetic enjoyment of their homes and properties. The purpose of these provisions relating to commercial mobile services is to encourage the location of commercial mobile service towers, to the extent they are needed, in nonresidential areas of the town, to encourage the shared use of existing and new towers as a means of reducing the overall need for towers in the town, to minimize the adverse impacts of commercial mobile service facilities located in the town and to balance the sometimes competing needs of such uses and their neighbors while at the same time accommodating the public interest in and demand for such services. The Town Board of the Town of Cazenovia finds that amending its current code regarding commercial mobile service facilities will assist in meeting these needs and is therefore reasonable and appropriate.” The commercial mobile service facilities local law was originally introduced in January 2024, and a public hearing was held the following month. The town received a lot of public feedback on the proposed local law. The input was reviewed, and Councilors Kelli Johnson Town l Page 7
Volume 214, Number 24 The Cazenovia Republican is published weekly by Eagle News. Office of Publication: 35 Albany St., Second Floor, Cazenovia, NY 13035. Periodical Postage Paid at Cazenovia, NY 13035, USPS 095-260. POSTMASTER: Send change of address to Cazenovia Republican, 2501 James St., Suite 100, Syracuse, NY 13206.
business: Owners sell Cazenovia and DeWitt bagel shops.
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sports: Girls track earns string of medals at state meet.
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