Archive: News

Mediation on the Fast Track

School Board Vice President Christine Iacobucci was not happy at Thursday night's meeting.  The board was considering whether or not to implement a "fast track" search for a new superintendent.  Reading from notes, Ms. Iacobucci likened interactions between board members to problems in the schools addressed by the CASS program, which deals with bullying and safety in the schools. Ms. Iacobucci said she is not comfortable "hiring a new person until the board situation is mediated by the Community Dispute Resolution Center" (CDRC). She also noted that because two seats are up for election next week it is possible there will be two new board members who, she said, should have a voice in the hiring process.

 

Meet the Candidates

Lansing community members will have an opportunity to meet candidates for the upcoming school board election on May 10 at 7:00 PM in the High School cafeteria. The two seats up for election are currently held by Thomas Keane and Bonita Lindberg. They will run for reelection against Gina Lord and Glenn Swanson.

Elections will be held in the Middle School auditorium lobby May 17 from noon to 9:00 PM. Three budget resolutions will also be on the ballot.

 

Lansing District School BoardThe third time was not the charm for the Lansing School district when School Superintendent Dr. Corlis Kaiser announced her resignation after only one year.  The school board seemed almost stunned that the find themselves faced with the prospect of yet another search.

 

The February public hearing had one thing in common with the January meeting: the board voted to hold over the hearings for another month.  The issue was whether or not Cingular should be allowed to build a cell tower on Mary Searles' property in Lansing.  The problem was that the board still has incomplete information from Cingular. And their reception to it was testy.

Cingular wants to build a cellular telephone tower in Lansing.  Not everybody is happy about it.  If approved, the tower will be built on Conlon Road, near Searles Road, on Mary Searle's property.  Mrs. Searles and many Lansing residents are excited about the prospect of clearer service.  She has been approached by the company to extend a 25 year lease.

Village of Lansing Trustees were presented with round one of the budget at their regular meeting Monday.  Mayor Donald Hartill said there would be a small increase in the tax levy as he juggles the pieces of the Village budget.  "The overriding principle, as always in the budget process, is to maintain the tax levy at inflation or below," he said.  "Inflation this past year has been about 3% so that's the goal."

The largest budget item is highway construction.   Road construction and maintenance is estimated at about $500,000, with another $100,000 in normal maintenance.  Work on Dart Drive is the largest part of that.  The road will be widened to accommodate pedestrians on one side of the road, and storm drains are to be installed.  Eventually the Village plans to close the intersection of Dart Drive and Warren Road, replacing it with a cul-de-sac, but that is not part of the current project.