Cambareri, Boucher, Staropoli Victorious in Bedford; Area Budgets Pass
Challengers Jessica Cambareri and John Boucher and incumbent Beth Staropoli won Bedford Board of Education seats Tuesday night while the district’s $138.5 million budget for next year was comfortably approved.
Cambareri, in her first run for the board, led the five-candidate race for three seats with 1,637 votes, according to results from the district. She was followed by Boucher, who picked up 1,444 votes, and Staropoli, who will serve a second term, hung on for third with 1,403 votes.
Board Vice President Michelle Brooks narrowly missed returning to the board falling four votes shy of third place. The race’s third challenger, Joseph Malichio, rounded out the results with 1,137.
The budget passed 1,730-998.
Pleasantville Infrastructure Bond Overwhelmingly Approved
The Pleasantville School District’s $8.9 million bond that will pay for security enhancements and facility upgrades at all three schools was overwhelmingly approved Tuesday night, 708-189.
Next year’s $51 million also passed by a similarly lopsided margin (729-169).
“We’re so grateful for this huge amount of support the community has given us, the budget and the bond,” said Superintendent of Schools Mary Fox-Alter moments after the results were announced at the Pleasantville Middle School gymnasium.
Work includes roof repairs, HVAC upgrades and more flexible seating to accommodate changing technology needs at Bedford Road School; improvements to electrical service, asbestos removal, window replacements,and renovation and expansion of the occupational and physical therapy room at Pleasantville Middle School: and roof work, repairs to the cupola, upgrade to the roof drains and removal of asbestos for the auditorium flooring at the high school.
School officials advertised the proposition as budget neutral since the debt service will match the $788,562 annual payments that are expiring by 2020-21 from two previous bonds, said Board of Education President Angela Vella.
“We’re very happy that the community seems to be very happy with our goals,” Vella said of the support for the bond and budget.
Incumbents Successful in Mount Pleasant
Mount Pleasant Board of Education incumbents Chris Pinchiaroli and Vincent Graci were re-elected Tuesday night and the district’s $64.2 million budget for 2019-20 was easily approved by voters.
Pinchiaroli led the way in the board race with 739 votes while Graci narrowly outlasted challenger and former trustee Thomas McCabe, 501-487, for the second seat, according to the unofficial district tally.
“I’m happy to serve the Mount Pleasant School District for another three years, and the budget passed, so I thank the community for that,” Pinchiaroli said after the results were announced.
Graci said he was happy that he will be able to continue to serve and continue “the relationships with the people who all have one goal in mind – to have the best school district we can for our kids.”
Byram Hills Budget Approved By Wide Margin
The district’s $94.5 million budget for 2019-20 sailed to passage, 462-91. North Castle residents, who make up the overwhelming majority of the district, will see a 1.53 tax rate increase next year.
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