Ward 5 NPA — Burlington, VT
Date: 2026-02-19
Time: 18:30

Ward 5 Neighborhood Planning Assembly (NPA):
 Draft Agenda
 Thursday, February 19th
 6:30PM-8:15PM
 ​

 Join in person: 645 Pine Street (DPW Building)
  ​ Join virtually: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89574495720
​
Facilitator: Lena Greenberg ​ Note Taker: Jak Tiano


6:30 ​ ​ Community Dinner​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ | 30 min
7:00 ​ ​ Welcome & Public Forum​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ | 10 min
7:10 ​ ​ NPA priorities in 2026​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ | 15 min
 ●​ Quick discussion ahead of a fuller conversation in March about our
 priority interests, which we’ll share with City Council
7:25​ ​ School Budget and other school updates ​ ​ ​ ​ | 30 min
 ●​ Lucia Campriello (Burlington School Board) will share about the school
 budget which will be on the ballot this coming Town Meeting Day
7:55​ ​ Discussion of Proposition Zero ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ | 20 min
 ●​ FaRied Munarsyah will present on Proposition Zero, a potential ballot
 item
8:15​ ​ Adjourn
 ●​ Next meeting will be Thursday, March 19, 2026

Ward 5 Neighborhood Planning Assembly (NPA):
 Draft Agenda
 Thursday, February 19th
 6:30PM-8:15PM
 ​

 Join in person: 645 Pine Street (DPW Building)
  ​ Join virtually: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89574495720
​
Facilitator: Lena Greenberg ​ Note Taker: Jak Tiano


6:30 ​ ​ Community Dinner​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ | 30 min
7:00 ​ ​ Welcome & Public Forum​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ | 10 min
7:10 ​ ​ NPA priorities in 2026​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ | 15 min
 ●​ Quick discussion ahead of a fuller conversation in March about our
 priority interests, which we’ll share with City Council
7:25​ ​ School Budget and other school updates ​ ​ ​ ​ | 30 min
 ●​ Lucia Campriello (Burlington School Board) will share about the school
 budget which will be on the ballot this coming Town Meeting Day
7:55​ ​ Discussion of Proposition Zero ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ | 20 min
 ●​ FaRied Munarsyah will present on Proposition Zero, a potential ballot
 item
8:15​ ​ Adjourn
 ●​ Next meeting will be Thursday, March 19, 2026




 Page 1 of 3
 Fiscal Year 2027 Proposed
 Budget for Town Meeting Day
 Town Meeting Day is March 3rd!
 Visit www.bsdvt.org/budget for complete budget and voting information.
BALLOT LANGUAGE Shall the voters of the School District approve the School Board to expend $140,807,830 which
is the amount the school board has determined to be necessary for the ensuing fiscal year? Burlington School District
estimates that this proposed budget, if approved, will result in per pupil education spending of $15,774.58, which is
6.40% higher than per pupil education spending for the current year.

 BUDGET AT A GLANCE
Total Current Year Budget (FY26) $134.7 million
Increases to Health Insurance, Wages, and
 $4,682,571
Benefits
Federal Revenue Reductions, Debt Service
 $4,675,259
and Operating Inflation
Reductions (10 FTEs, Downtown BHS Rent,
 -$3,250,000
Department Budgets and Reorganizations)
Total Proposed Budget for Next Year (FY27) $140.8 million

Percent Change from FY26 Budget 4.47%

 TAX IMPACT ESTIMATES
 See reverse for more information.
Property Tax Payer +4.7%

Impact on $370K homestead $266

Income Tax Payer +1.89%

Impact on $50k income $23

Important Disclaimer: The actual impact on taxpayers receiving an income-
based credit is a combination of changes to their incomes and house-site
values over multiple years. This estimate makes assumptions about all of
these variables to illustrate a hypothetical impact. Income credit lags
behind the change in property tax bills by one year.

 BUDGET HIGHLIGHTS
1. Prioritizes academic achievement by providing more
 support for early math and literacy.
2. Drives funds towards students who need it the most with
 updated RISE allocations and expanded special education
 services.
3. Continues to align staffing to enrollment while minimizing
 layoffs.
4. Property Tax Rate increase assumes a $75 million tax buy-
 down from the State of Vermont.
5. Development of BSD’s budget is informed by the District’s
 Strategic Plan and our North Star: Every learner is
 challenged, empowered, and engaged.

 What’s the story behind our budget?
 Turn this page over to learn more!
 Page 2 of 3
 Fiscal Year 2027 Proposed
 Budget for Town Meeting Day
 Town Meeting Day is March 3rd!
 Visit www.bsdvt.org/budget for complete budget and voting information.
What is the Story Behind this Year’s Budget?
Each year, our goal is the same: to be careful with public
dollars while continuing to provide excellent schools for
our students. The school budget supports classroom
learning, social and emotional supports, arts and music,
athletics, and afterschool and summer programs that many
families rely on. We knew that keeping these programs at
their current level would require about a 5% increase to
the District’s overall budget, even after making reductions
due to lower enrollment. This is a reflection of the rising
costs of health care, salaries, and the day-to-day costs of
running our schools (inflation). We also knew that in
addition to keeping taxes low, recent achievement data
makes it clear that we need to be prioritizing classroom
 Combining transportation, food,
instruction. maintenance, and school operations, over
As a result, our proposed budget offers a number of 80% of all funds go directly to schools!
reductions while also supporting the following
instructional activities:
 🍎 Updating the academic coaching model to include increased time spent on direct student support (e.g., intervention)
 🍎 Revising our evaluation framework to align with the learning framework.
 🍎 Prioritizing early literacy through the use of universal screeners and training in the science of reading.
 🍎 Expanding support for elementary mathematics.
 🍎 Expanding in-District special education programing for students with the most significant needs.

Together, the budget represents moderate growth of 4.47%, and a moderate property tax impact of 4.7%. It’s important to
know that this projected Property Tax Rate increase assumes that the Vermont legislature will add $75 million to Vermont’s
Education Fund, reducing the tax impact on every community in the state. We are confident that at least this amount will be
added. Without this, the tax rate increase would be 8.99%.
How are we Working to Control Costs?
Our primary cost controlling measure is staffing. This year’s budget reduces 6.5 classroom teachers in response to a decline in
enrollment. An additional 3.5 district office positions are also proposed for reduction. We will also be reducing department
budgets and restructuring some positions in central office. While we have faced reductions in each of the past four budget
cycles, we have worked to avoid mass layoffs by spreading changes over time. As a result, attrition and restructuring have
enabled us to retain almost all teachers impacted by reductions in the past few years. This remains our goal again this year.
How Does Borrowing for the BHS/BTC Project Impact this Budget?
BSD has completed borrowing for the project. We were able to limit our total borrowing to $159 million of the $165 million
voter authorization, saving taxpayers six million dollars of debt and well in excess of that amount in interest costs. The proposed
FY27 budget includes $13.5 million of debt service that represents the annual payment of principal and interest associated with
the $159 million that has been borrowed. For context, the projected project tax would be about 5.6% lower were it not for this
debt service.




 Development of BSD’s budget is informed by the District’s Strategic Plan and our North Star: every learner is challenged,
 empowered, and engaged. Turn this document over to learn more about the budget.
 Page 3 of 3

Neighborhood Planning Assembly Minutes
 Ward
 NPA: 5

 Date of Assembly :_2/19/26__ Start Time: (Commence): 7:02pm
 Location: 645 Pine Street Finish Time: (Adjourn): __8:31pm_
 Note taker: Jak Tiano Please forward these official minutes to: BT

Steering Committee Members in Attendance:​
Jason Van Dreische, Jak Tiano, FaRied Munarsyah, Lena Greenberg, Cathy Foley, Prim VanWolvelear (Zoom)
Discussion Topics
●​ NPA priorities in 2026 Actions Taken / Decisions Made
●​ School Budget and other school updates ●​ Drafted our 2026 NPA Priorities for City Council
●​ Discussion of Proposition Zero

Agenda Items and Actions:

 ●​ Commence: 7:02pm
 ○​ Lena opens the meeting with an overview of the agenda
 ●​ Public forum
 ○​ Jason Van Dreische gives an update on the parks path in Calahan
 ○​ Lucia Campriello asks for support in running for the school board
 ○​ Sarah (Ward 6) asks if running unopposed matters for a vote
 ■​ Lucia says that you don’t need to vote for them and others say that it does
 matter because you know how
 ○​ Jak Tiano asks people to get in touch with their legislators to support transit
 funding
 ■​ David Foss supports Jak’s comments and says that transportation is
 important, especially to the airport
 ■​ Scott Lowe asks if it’s only related to Burlington or if it’s the whole state,
 and Jak clarifies that it’s transit in Vermont overall
 ○​ Lena reminds people that March 3rd is Town Meeting Day, and that our April
 meeting will be our NPA Steering Committee election
 ●​ NPA priorities in 2026
 ○​ Lena explains the NPA resolution that passed last year, and why we’re talking
 about NPA priorities
 ○​ Scott Lowe says a priority for him is the uncertainty around property taxes and
 how they may shift; specifically asking for why shifting the tax burden would be
 more beneficial to residents
 ○​ Jason says we should tax more the things we don’t want, and tax the things we
 want less; i.e. tax surface parking more, cannabis shops more
 ○​ David says Burlington needs to develop a better transportation plan, it’s hard for
 many residents to access health care, airport, etc. Needs to be easier for people to
 come into town for work. SSTA for many seniors is becoming more expensive
 and hard to access.
 ○​ Resident says that housing for unhoused people, expansion of voucher program
 should be prioritized.
 ○​ Jak says this should be an opportunity for thinking about how we manage growth
 with intention.
 ○​ Jamie Contois is thinking a lot about what are some of the ways we can support
 communication around the needs of working families (health care, child care,
 housing). Also wondering about the seemingly unneeded division between
 partisan politics in the city.
●​ School Budget and other school updates
 ○​ Lucia Campriello and Jeff Wick introduce themselves as school board
 commissioners
 ■​ Lucia gives an overview of what the budget covers, and the value it
 provides
 ■​ She also mentions that a major part of the budget increase is health care,
 and the primary component of the budget is teachers
 ■​ BTV is seeing a decrease in enrollment
 ■​ $6M increase in budget, with a 4.7% increase to property tax payer
 ■​ Jeff says we have a clean audit, and even had a tax decrease last year
 ■​ He also says that if we hadn’t had to build the new high school, education
 taxes probably would have gone down again this year.
 ■​ He thanks the public for their support over the years, and key school
 district staff.
 ■​ Andy Simon asks about how “the state level stuff” impacts our local
 school issues. Lucia explains the way pupil weightings changed in recent
 years, and how important that was to equitable funding of Burlington
 schools.
 ■​ Jason asks what percentage of $140.8M is health insurance? Jeff isn’t sure
 off the top of his head.
 ■​ Jason also asks about any known plans for Burlington district
 consolidation, but presenters aren’t sure where things stand at the moment
 but would be against it.
 ■​ Jamie asks where the coalition is for health care reform given its
 existential risk to many organizations around the state, and what does our
 school district do in that larger conversation.
 ○​ Victor Prussack is the Director of Engagement, is here to talk about “proactive
 ICE preparedness” procedure
 ■​ The district is hoping to be prepared ahead of time if we were to see the
 same thing that happened in Portland ME or Minneapolis MN
 ■​ There is a draft plan now at the district level for the procedure, hoping to
 have it public by the end of the first week of march
 ■​ Goal is to keep attention away from our schools
 ■​ Victor outlines the major buckets of the procedure, and details will be out
 in a few weeks.
 ■​ Andy asks “what triggers this plan”? Victor said that they’re still working
 out the details, but in a “Green, Orange, Red” scenario, we’re already in
 Orange.
 ■​ Jamie asks how we can start dispelling the mythology around what can
 happen here, to offer a reality check for people about what it means to be
 taken by ICE in Vermont. Jason agrees. Jamie clarifies that she does want
 to see some action on this in the PTOs, and Victor says that leadership will
 need to come from families in the community.
 ■​ Rebecca (online, Ward 3) adds that a couple things we can start doing now
 is to get to know your neighbors, go to events, and build community
 before things get worse. We can know our rights now.
●​ Discussion of Proposition Zero
 ○​ FaRied opens the discussion about how town meeting works in other small towns
 in Vermont, and how prop zero is aiming to be a charter amendment in the
 November election
 ○​ It includes three mechanisms of direct democracy:
 ○​ The ability of voters to solicit 5% of voters on a petition on:
 ■​ advisory question
 ■​ a voters initiative
 ■​ a popular referendum
 ○​ Daniel says that the point of Proposition Zero is to fix an error in Burlington’s
 charter to restore some aspect of direct democracy
 ○​ The goal is to update the charter to give the three new powers listed above to the
 people, allowing people to have some lament of direct democracy
 ○​ Andy asks: 1) who makes the determination that an ordinance is legal? (The city
 attorney) 2) if we get enough signatures, the city must put it on the ballot because
 it’s a charter change, right? (Yes)
●​ Meeting adjourns at 8:31pm