Schools, county vie for funds

Orange County Commissioner Barry Jacobs has proposed a major shift in the funding of new facilities in Orange County.

During the past 17 years, the county has spent 77 percent of its capital improvement money on schools and the remaining amount on county buildings.

But Jacobs' proposal would reduce the amount spent on schools to 60 percent for the next 10 years.

"It doesn't mean that every year it has to be 60-40," Jacobs said.

The exact amount spent on schools would be determined each year and could be increased when more funds are needed, he said.

Capital spending money pays for the construction of new facilities and the upkeep of old buildings. "We have ignored county facilities for a long time for the expense of schools, and rightfully so," Jacobs said.

But he said there are "tons of" government buildings that also need improvements.

"It's time to take a new look at other places where improvements need to be made," Jacobs said.

The Board of Commissioners will decide how to allocate the funds at its Tuesday meeting.

Jacobs said there is solid support for the proposal among the other county commissioners.

But school officials are concerned about the proposed changes.

The Chapel Hill-Carrboro Board of Education sent a letter dated last Tuesday to Jacobs citing some of its main concerns.

"It's a significant departure from how capital spending decisions have been made in the past," said Neil Pedersen, city schools superintendent.

Setting a strict ratio for the use of the funds might ensure that money goes where it is not needed, he said, adding that he would prefer that the money be doled out on an as-needed basis.

Pedersen said he and other school officials do not fully understand how the proposal would affect capital projects.

The Orange County Board of Education postponed its regularly scheduled Monday meeting so members could attend the commissioners' meeting Tuesday.

The board's primary concern is unequal funding between the two school systems in the county.

"There is an enormous gap in how money is spent," board member Elizabeth Brown said.

The city school district generally receives full funding for its budget. County schools generally do not.

"My goal is that every child in Orange County get the same educational facility," Brown said.

The proposed change comes at a time when the county is building a new middle school and the city is trying to build a new high school, both of which are over budget.

But the county's School Adequate Public Facilities Ordinance helps commissioners determine when new schools will be needed and allows them to deal with the issue before it becomes a problem, Jacobs said.

The ordinance already has prepared the county for the city's third high school and a new county middle school, and a reduction in funds would not prevent these two schools from being built.

Jacobs said he was unsure whether a new elementary school in the city school district now will be necessary, due to city schools' lower-than-projected enrollment this year.

The county's projections will be updated using the official enrollment numbers as of Monday. Officials expect that the new numbers will indicate that a new elementary school will not be needed as soon as planned, Pedersen said.

If a new elementary school is not needed, the money allocated for the building of the school will help pay for the budget overruns in the building of the other schools.

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