GRAY – Voters in Gray and New Gloucester approved the entire SAD 15 budget proposal of $17.98 million for the 2005-06 school year on Tuesday.
Both communities – by almost a three-to-one margin on most questions – supported a complex spending package that includes raising and spending additional local funds, accepting state subsidy grants and providing local share assessments to match the district’s needs to educate 2,000 students in five schools.
Voters approved an all-day kindergarten program that begins in September using local funds of $166,084. The final combined vote in both towns was 690 to 445. Last year, the article failed by a narrow margin.
In Article 2, voters appropriated $15,311,739 to fund essential programs and services by a combined vote of 897 to 237.
Article 3 raised $97,000 for annual payments for debt service for major and minor renovations not approved by the state by 889 to 242.
Article 4 raised additional local funds for school purposes totaling $1,447,989, approved by a vote of 798 to 329.
Voters gave the district authority to spend $17.98 million, approved by 835 to 278 in Article 5.
By a vote of 838 to 269, voters approved using $150,000 from surplus funds and $50,000 in additional local funds to pay for Adult Education.
The budget increase is 4.98 percent over this year’s budget.
New Gloucester
William Dale Maschino won a three-year term on the Board of Selectmen by a vote of 248 against Arthur Wayne Cobb’s 142 votes.
Ron Brann took a three-year SAD 15 school board seat from incumbent Carmel Morin by a vote of 205 to 187.
Gray officials
Incumbents Tod Bennett and Peter Pinkerton retained their seats on the SAD 15 school board by each garnering 424 votes to defeat former board member Dan Maguire who earned 306 votes.
Denise Duda will serve a one-year term on the Gray Council, receiving 392 votes against 344 votes for Audrey Burns. Incumbent Richard Hall lost in a three-year term runoff for two slots to Marchian “Skip” Crane’s 414 votes and Andrew J. Upham’s 404 votes.
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