St. Paul schools face $15.1 million budget gap for 2016-17

The ups and downs of school district life were on display in St. Paul on Tuesday as the school board learned it faces a $15.1 million budget gap for 2016-17 — plus a decision on whether to build a new "state of the art" middle school on the city's East Side.

A district official spoke with enthusiasm of a $65 million to $70 million building that would be a "capstone," he said, of projects to be developed under a long-range facilities plan approved by the board in December.

"This is a great opportunity for the district to invest in the east side of town," said Tom Parent, the district's facilities director.

A site has not been found. But if board members give the go-ahead in April, Parent envisions a September 2019 opening for what would be another significant government investment in one of the city's neediest areas — as well as the district's first new building in nearly 20 years.

In 2014, the city opened a new $14 million recreation center and library — Arlington Hills Community Center — in the Payne-Phalen neighborhood. The presence of that facility and other community services allow the district to "promote this as a multiagency, multi-partner opportunity," Parent said.

The potentially good news for middle school backers is that the funding would come from a part of the budget that by law cannot be touched for general fund purposes.

That was the unfortunate side of Tuesday's board presentations.

The projections represented a high-level view, Schrul said, with determinations of what it could mean for schools and programs still to come.

Among the broad-stroke budget-balancing suggestions offered Tuesday included limiting most program budgets to current allocations — a move that could require cuts because inflationary costs would not be covered — and the offering of early retirement incentives.

Five years ago, the district went the early retirement route, but achieved savings of only about $1 million per year, Schrul said.

St. Paul has yet to see the enrollment gains once promised by Superintendent Valeria Silva with adoption of her Strong Schools, Strong Communities reorganization of schools. In 2016-17, enrollment is expected to show a slight decrease, resulting in a projected $1.2 million loss in revenue.

Board Member Steve Marchese said that he was concerned "we can only cut so far," and when a cost-trimming measure is employed, "it's gone."

In the coming months, the district is expected to engage community members in public discussions about its budget and its facilities plans.

On the facilities front, the board also is being asked to approve the relocation of Jie Ming Mandarin Immersion Academy from space it now shares with Hamline Elementary to the current Homecroft Early Learning Center in Highland Park.

Jie Ming, now a K-4 program, is adding a grade per year, and is a district success story. In 2015, each of its 25 third-graders tested proficient in math in the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment (MCA) exams.

Parent said it was hoped the move to Homecroft would be compete by the start of the 2017-18 school year.

To learn more about the facilities plans, go to the board's webpage and click on "Board Book 2016."