Board approves $200,000 withdrawal from maintenance reserve for urgent repairs

At its January meeting the Hawthorne Board of Education approved a finance committee recommendation to withdraw $200,000 from the district’s maintenance reserve to cover unbudgeted maintenance and repairs.

Finance committee chair Miss Leo told the board the withdrawal is intended to ensure funds are available for urgent repairs discovered during the first half of the school year, citing recent boiler and roof work and other maintenance needs. “It’s going to be withdrawn from the maintenance reserve, for, repairs and upgrades that were not necessarily budgeted for,” Miss Leo said during committee discussion.

Board members asked whether referendum funds could cover some work; the chair and superintendent clarified the maintenance reserve withdrawal is for routine maintenance and not for new capital projects (which are funded separately). The committee said remaining referendum funds will be directed primarily to the security project tied to the referendum while maintenance-reserve money will be used for immediate repairs such as addressing water collection and freeze hazards at building entries.

The motion to approve the finance committee’s slate, including the $200,000 withdrawal (F3), was moved, seconded and approved by roll call.