At the North Colonie School District Board of Education meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 15, board members considered routes to take as the possibility of higher enrollment arises with several housing developments finishing construction and beginning to sell to new residents.
The Board of Education projected that the district “could easily see another 20-30 kids by the end of the school year,” but since enrollment has gone down in some schools, Superintendent Joseph Corr said it is not something to be overly concerned about.
“Districtwide, we are down 300 students from 2008, so we currently have plenty of room to accommodate an increase in enrollment but will certainly watch developments surrounding enrollment and class sizes very closely,” Corr said in a statement.
He said the district is not anticipating any major budgetary impacts at this time.
“We continue to monitor the situation,” said Corr. “In addition, we are studying the implementation of a full-day kindergarten program for the 2015-2016 school year and are considering the budgetary implications that would have.”
To discuss options and how to obtain projected numbers on the amount of children the district may see, the board heard from Michael Lyons of the Colonie Office of Planning and Economic Development.
Lyons outlined the housing projects developing in the northern Colonie area that will likely affect enrollment numbers in the school district, which included the new Shelter Cove Apartments off of New Loudon Road and Robert Marini Homes’ Canterbury Crossing by the North Colonie Soccer Complex.
Lyons stated that the number of children possibly enrolling is dependent on the style of homes available in each development and how close the developments are to completion.
The North Ridge Hollow community at the end of Swatling Road, for example, will consist of single-family homes that appeal to new families. Meanwhile, the condominiums at Canterbury Crossing off of Route 9 developed by Amedore Homes appeal more to “empty nesters.”
Lyons suggested that, based on previous experiences of school districts, census information be pooled to see the number of school-aged children per household per development.
North Colonie’s Director of Transportation John Myers also spoke to board members about transportation concerns, such as transit times increasing, but it is still too early to tell how little or large the impact the housing developments will have on the district.
Depending on possible census results and the enrollment numbers the district sees over the next months, Corr and the board of education agreed that adjustments and tweaking would more than likely need to be done when class size adjustments, transportation needs and budgeting become more apparent.
