AUBURN – School officials will ask the city to let them keep most of the $460,000 from the sale of a Mount Auburn Avenue day care center for the 2008-09 budget.

City councilors Monday were divided about whether to let the school department keep the money from the sale of the old Smart Start Day Care the city owned.

School Superintendent Tom Morrill said he’ll suggest the School Committee ask if it can keep most of the proceeds, returning about $110,000 to the city to reduce property taxes.

“What we’re trying to do is balance the concept that our students deserve to have a good education with being as fiscally responsible as we can,” Morrill said.

School officials are scheduled to adopt their budget at 7 p.m. Wednesday. That budget will go to voters May 6.

The proposed school budget includes budget cuts and staff layoffs as well as money from the department’s rainy day fund balance and proceeds from the Mount Auburn Avenue sale.

“We have needs, and we’re very sensitive about filling them with tax-generated revenue,” Morrill said. “We’re looking at revenue sources that won’t impact next year’s tax bills.”

The school department’s proposed budget calls for $17.9 million in state money and $15 million in property tax revenues, a $475,00 reduction compared the 2008 budgeted property tax revenues.

That budget eliminates the science Land Lab, lays off 21 school employees and eliminates another eight jobs through attrition. The layoff list includes 13 teachers, several secretaries, library and education technicians.

It also includes all proceeds from the Mount Auburn Avenue property sale, and $138,000 from fund balances. But some councilors said they favored keeping the proceeds for the city budget.

Morrill said he’ll recommend taking another $110,000 from the fund balance, along with $350,000 from the property sale.

Monday’s City Council meeting ended with a wobbly consensus that the city should keep the money. Councilors Ron Potvin, Robert Hayes and Bruce Bickford all favored letting the schools have the money. Councilors Dan Herrick, Ray Berube, Mike Farrell and Bob Mennealy said they favored using it to pay down property taxes.

But Mayor John Jenkins said Tuesday it won’t be settled until councilors vote officially.

“There was consensus among councilors Monday, but there was no firm decision,” he said. “Councilors have the ability to reconsider their positions right up until there is a vote. It’s not written in stone.”