By Nicholas Brown
Staff Writer

The deliberative session of Allenstown’s School District Meeting was an exercise in expeditiousness.

“I got here five minutes late – I sat down, and it was over,” said Annie Bourque, a mother of twin daughters in kindergarten. Bourque was still rifling through the meeting’s paper handouts 10 minutes after the session adjourned.

After only 15 minutes on Thursday, Feb. 9, the legislative body of about 40 residents approved the short list of warrant articles to appear on the March 14 ballot as written.

Only one resident questioned school officials, who are proposing an $8.7 million operating budget and a $3.4 million bond for renovations and additions to Allenstown Elementary School.

AES/Dupont
The $3.4 million plan is essentially identical to the plan narrowly nixed by voters in each of the last two years, said school officials. The plan has come up nine and seven votes shy of a two-thirds majority.

The plan would add almost 17,000 square feet of instructional area and storage space to Allenstown Elementary School and allow Armand Dupont School’s fifth-graders to return to the elementary school.

School officials say the change would free space at both schools for special education and food service, as well as programming like art, music and computer instruction. The plan would also eliminate undersized classrooms at Allenstown Elementary.

After voters narrowly rejected the school plan the last two years, the school board established a 10-member committee to re-evaluate the facility needs of the district.

School Board Chairman Thomas Irzyk said the committee considered a $5 million construction and renovation plan, and also the possibility of building a new school. The committee deemed the $3.4 million plan most appropriate, said Irzyk.

Irzyk noted that the majority of Allenstown voters have supported the plan in each of the last two years, and suggested that last year’s rejection – by seven votes – may have been an inaccurate reflection of the electorate’s will.

“This year we had a wellrounded committee of people that came out and tried to see what’s best for the town,” said Irzyk. “I really believe if it wasn’t for the snow storm last year, we wouldn’t be talking about this right now.”

Officials estimate with a 4.5 percent interest rate that the 10- year bond would have its greatest impact, at $1.05, on the tax rate in the second year of repayment.

Under that scenario, the owner of a $200,000 home would pay an additional $210 in the second year of the bond, with payments decreasing in subsequent years.

Operating budget
Major increases in the proposed operating budget for the district include $253,101 in special education services, $65,100 in replacement computers and new social studies books and part-time instructors for new initiatives for health education and gifted and talented students.

The $8.7 million proposed operating budget is only $276,707 higher than the proposed default budget.

Election day is Tuesday, March 14, and voting will take place between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. at Allenstown Elementary School.