TURNER – SAD 52 directors announced Thursday that building renovations in the district are close to completion, and Greene Central School will be finished Dec. 17.

The board also said it has gone over the projected budget by 2 percent, or $100,000, because of several renovations and a two-room addition to Tripp Middle School in Turner that was not originally intended.

Business Manager Christopher Trenholm said the addition will hopefully be covered under state funding, which the district has applied for.

“It’s a lot cheaper to buy those two rooms now as we do our renovations than to go back and try to add them later,” he said. “We are getting a lot of bang for our buck.”

The rooms are approximately 600 square feet and are already being used.

Board member and finance committee reporter Peter Maxwell said the district made a calculated guess with the architects on site that it was not unreasonable to include the alternate rooms and reduce the need of using the contingency money.

The cost of the building projects and renovations is nearing $6 million, and the board said a little more money may be needed.

Superintendent Thomas Hanson said he is trying to keep spending under control.

“Last year during the budget process we had a 2 percent budget-to-budget increase including our first payment on the building projects,” Hanson said. “But we will continue to look at every cent that we spend, trying to be as frugal as we can.”

Hanson said the public’s comments at the forum on district issues centered on money.

“A lot of their concerns focused on school expenses and property tax,” he said. “This district is committed to creating quality schools but being sure that we are being efficient,” he said.

“This year we did not fill two teacher positions. We left one position in the budget but recycled the cost of the other one back into the system,” he said. “That saved money will roll into the contingency fund for the next year.”

The board is inviting the public to an open house at Greene Central School from 6 to 7 p.m. Nov. 17.

The next school board meeting is at 7 p.m. Nov. 18 at the old Wal-Mart building on Mount Auburn Avenue in Auburn.