LACKAWANNA SCHOOLS
Bethlehem case legal fees to be shared
The Lackawanna School Board on Wednesday approved an agreement with the city to cover half the legal expenses resulting from ongoing litigation with the owners of the former Bethlehem Steel site who are contesting the tax assessment on the property.
The measure was approved, 6-1, with board member Michael Sanders casting the lone dissenting vote.
At the urging of board member Ronald Miller, the board amended the intermunicipal agreement with the city so that any additional costs beyond the $577,785 legal bill incurred to date will require a separate agreement between the city and the school district.
Under the agreement, which was approved by the City Council on Nov. 10, the school district will assume responsibility for paying half of the city’s legal fees. The district already has paid $192,149 to the city, leaving a balance of $96,743.
In April, the School Board agreed to pay $150,000 to cover the school district’s share of the legal fees. This was done over the objections of then-departing School Board member Dennis Chudzik, who insisted that the district was not required to contribute to the legal costs without a formal agreement.
Then board President Kevin Rozwood said the district was bound by a “gentle-man’s agreement” that had been informally worked out by a previous school board several years earlier.
In other action Wednesday, the board delayed approving a 2009-10 budget development guide for principals and central office administrators.
The board was initially set to vote on capping any proposed budget increase at 3.5 percent. However, Miller sought an amendment that would cap the proposed increase at zero.
Miller noted that the board cannot control rising utility costs or make cuts where district employees were recently awarded salary increases under new contracts approved by the board last month.
In October, the board approved new five-year agreements with the teachers union and the Civil Service Employees Association, both of which call for average salary increases of 3 to 3.5 percent over the life of the contracts.
