A probable double-digit increase in employee health care premiums for the 2026-27 academic year prompted Pine Plains Central School District Superintendent Brian Timm to hold his first budget workshop two weeks early — and lay out his school consolidation proposal to the Board of Education at its meeting on Thursday, Jan. 8.
In an effort to contain costs, he recommended shuttering Cold Spring Early Learning Center. “My short-term solution is to move students in pre-K through first grade to Seymour Smith [Intermediate Learning Center],” Timm said. “It will be easier to stay under the tax cap if we operate two buildings as opposed to three buildings: It would save $1.5 million in staff, maintenance, and [utilities]. Transportation would be cheaper, too, and that’s not counting any additional revenue from Cold Spring as a part of this.”
Timm said the shuttered elementary school could be rented to Dutchess Boards of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) or to Anderson Center for Autism, which currently rents two rooms. “This would be viable as long as Cold Spring is in the black,” he said, “And as long as we house educational programs our students attend, we can still get building aid [state funding].”
Historically, health insurance premiums have risen 6 to 7% annually, according to Timm. “Next year they may go up over 16%,” he said. “This would increase the tax levy and pierce the [state-mandated] tax cap on health care alone.” He noted that the premium estimate is very preliminary: “There’s a chance the number could come down, but I’ve been told it will stay in the double digits, with double digits next year as well.”
Faced with shrinking student enrollment and a potential 50% reduction in state Foundation Aid, the district has been investigating school consolidation since July 2024. Three options emerged: closing Cold Spring; shuttering both Cold Spring and Seymour Smith (currently serving students in grades two through five) and housing all students in Stissing Mountain Junior/Senior High School; or closing Seymour Smith and sending second graders to Cold Spring and third through fifth graders to Stissing Mountain.
Seeking input, the school board held three employee and community Future-Ready forums in November 2025, and emailed Future-Ready surveys across the district.
“We had 22 forum responses, and 78 responses to our individual surveys,” Timm said. “There were two key highlights the community was adamant about: maintaining the elementary school integrity, and their worry about younger and older students riding on the buses together.”
Timm said his proposal would address these concerns: “The longer term solutions, like moving grades three through five to [the high school], would require building modifications that could put us five to six years out.”
According to Timm, the school board must vote on his consolidation proposal at its Jan. 20 meeting. “The tax levy limit calculation is due at the [state] comptroller’s office on March 1,” he said. “So we have to be ready to decide if the tax cap will be pierced by our second meeting next month (Tuesday, Feb. 17].”
Last year, the district’s budget rose by 3.2%, generating $27,885,802 in local revenue, while staying below the state-mandated tax cap of 3.57%. If the PPCSD raises taxes above that limit, a supermajority is required for approval — at least 60% of voters.
Business Official Laura Rafferty gave a general review about the process of creating the district’s 2026-27 budget, and important dates and deadlines. “Jan. 15 is our first look at [Gov. Kathy Hochul’s] executive budget numbers for state aid. Her final budget is expected April 1,” Rafferty said. “Our final budget is due April 21.” Timm added that the district’s tax levy could be modified up until that date, if necessary.
Veteran board member Fred “Chip” Couse said that at least half of the school districts in New York needing a supermajority failed their votes last year. “No one in the community wants to risk dealing with a contingency budget,” he said. “They’re ugly.”
Several board members expressed misgivings about moving ahead with consolidation plans, especially given the limited input from residents. “There were only 78 responses of 6,000 people in the community at large,” Jim Griffin said. Jean Stapf and Claire Copley-Eisenberg echoed his concern. “We want to be financially responsible,” Stapf said, “but I still don’t understand what the savings would be in each different [consolidation] scenario.”
Brooke Brown, a Stanfordville resident and the mother of a 4-year-old, spoke during public comments: “I don’t have an argument against the need to save money, but too many basic questions are still unanswered — about bus routes, classroom placements, and building [modifications]. This shouldn’t be a forced or hasty decision.”
Timm said that he understood everyone’s apprehension. “You can vote how you want,” he told the board, “But I need to know so I can plan for [next year’s] budget.”
If Dr. Timm is responsible for providing accurate information for the cost of the three different building placement proposals then he shouldn’t be directing the board to make a decision before he presents that information.
Throwing out the cost of the health insurance is a political move by Dr. Timm during a negotiations year. I’m not doubting that there’s an increase, however, that’s not the prime reason for budget concerns.
I’d like to hope that it was distortion by the editor of the newspaper rather than an underhanded attempt by the Superintendent of Schools to undermine fair negotiations.
You are never going to make everyone happy but moving cold spring students to seymour smith makes the most sense. It saves money and keeps elementary students together.
As a per-diem substitute aide, primarily working at Cold Spring, I saw our Pre-K classes return to three classes this year. I am not seeing unused rooms. Any not used as classrooms are in service for special programs. The atmosphere for the kids is comfortable and age-appropriate allowing them to prepare gradually before moving on to the more intensive learning at the middle school. Recess periods, mostly outdoors, are a good mix of ages.