INSIDE:
COMMUNITY C O M M U N I TP.27| Y P .AROUND 2 5 | B UAFS IP.31 N E S| OPINION S P . 3 0 P.34| | O P BUSINESS I N I O N PP.37 . 3 5|REAL | S PESTATE O R T S P.RE1| P . 3 8 GETOUT | G E T OP.41 U T | PSPORTS . 4 1 | P.45| C L A SCLASSIFIED S I F I E D P P.47 .46
www.ahwatukee.com
A REAL PROM
.3
P
HANGING TOUGH
. 25
P
Wednesday, April 7, 2021
@AhwatukeeFN |
@AhwatukeeFN
Kyrene faces $6M budget hit with little relief in sight BY PAUL MARYNIAK AFN Executive Editor
D
riven largely by a projected enrollment decline of about 1,250 students, Kyrene School District will get $6 million less in state revenue in the coming school year that two upcoming rounds of federal pandemic relief wonât come close to covering. That sobering news was delivered to the Governing Board March 30 by district Chief Financial Officer Chris Hermann, who focused solely on the districtâs 2021-22 state revenue â leaving until later this spring Kyreneâs plans for addressing the shortfall.
Nevertheless, Hermann indicated that the board faces some tough decisions over the next two months as it crafts a spending plan for next school year with a budget that projects $109.7 million in million in state revenue, less than the $115.7 million in its current year's budget. âThis means that we do not have the financial resources to address all of the budget shortfalls that weâll be facing this year as well as next,â he said. Compounding the impact of enrollment decline is the wide disparity among Arizonaâs school districts in the amount of pandemic relief funds that will be coming in two waves.
Celebrating unusual library
PROTECTING HOMEBUYERS
Kyrene is getting the short end of a multimillion-dollar stick, Hermann demonstrated. âThese amounts have not been distributed equally or proportionately across all public schools,â he said, adding what Kyrene is likely to receive âwill unfortunately not be enough to completely stabilize all of our finances through this pandemic and address all the areas that have created shortfalls in this year as well as next yearâs budget. âThis includes offsetting the loss in funding that was due to enrollment and funding reductions for distance learning, funding for addi-
see KYRENE page 12
Shrinking revenue slowing highway work in Arizona BY PAUL MARYNIAK AFN Executive Editor
. RE1
P
HEADING OUT
. 38
P
Music Maker Workshops in Ahwatukee recently marked the six-month anniversary of its unusual twist on the Little Library concept. Joining in were, from left, Shelley Yakubow, Kim Steedman, Madison Archer and Jessica Magee. For the story, see page 25. (Pablo Robles/AFN)
M
ore electric and fuel-efficient motor vehicles and a gas tax that hasnât been changed in 30 years are making it increasingly more difficult for Arizona to provide a highway system that can serve its rapidly rising population. During a briefing last week for the PHX East Valley Partnership, Floyd Roehrich Jr., an executive officer of the Arizona Department of Transportation, said shrinking revenue has cut by a third the stateâs annual spending on its highway system. As annual revenue has shrunk from $1.6
The latest breaking news and top local stories in Ahwatukee!
www.Ahwatukee.com .com
see ADOT page 22
JUST A CLICK AWAY