Pickerington Area Taxpayers Alliance

Guys there have been a number of you trying to figure out our comparable expenses with other districts in Ohio and Central Ohio.

The Ohio Department of Education has already run the official numbers and even I was surprised by the results. I have relied on the PLSD for much of my information in the past and maybe we all should be checking things out a little closer in the future.

First Lets relate to just how much of our yearly family income goes for the PLSD. ENOUGH this does include the Pickerington School Income tax.

1. Hilliard pays 2.25% of their yearly family income to their schools

2. Bexley pays 2.19% of their yearly family income to their schools

3. Pickerington Pays 3.22% of their yearly family income to the schools.

The ODE does report that similar schools to PLSD in central Ohio are Hilliard Schools.

PLSD average household income is $47,600 per year in 2004

Hilliard average household income is $45,841 per year in 2004

Total number of students in 2004 PLSD = 8923
Hilliard =14,233 Bexley = 2138

Total Operating Budgets for PLSD = $71.6 Million

Total Operating Budgets for Hilliard = $73.4 Million

I am asking that others go onto the ODE web site and look at the financial numbers and the reports to the ODE. If these figures are correct then something is very wrong with our school district when compared to Hilliard Schools.

Frankly I am shocked by the comparisons from PLSD and Hilliard. They can educate 14,233 students with just few more funds more than it takes Pickerington to educate 8923 students.

These numbers are a year or so old. However I doubt much has changed in percentages. I believe the newest figures for Pickerington is around 9400 students.

By It does not look good for PLSD

Lucy You got some splainin to do

Holy Cow....................!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's worse than I thought.

Thankfully 5120 people had some sense.

By Ricky Ricardo

finally, at the turn of the tide

Fellow voters:

I voted for the tax increase tonight but I do understand the no votes. We?’ve reached break point in this community. I know, I've asked around and folks aren?’t too happy about our vital signs. Thank goodness we can decide if we would like to tax ourselves to death, right? There are many older residents in my neighborhood that will see no immediate benefit by voting for a tax increase. Plus, I can think of a few things that killed any possibility for passing a bond issue any time soon. First, school board members spouting off about what we can and cannot afford. School board, you?’ve got to be politicians not sound bite specialists. The press will hang you with or without your collective belts. Second, we all know that houses continue to sprout up and apartments continue to produce record numbers of kids each year. It is astounding (or sickening) to read the enrollment rates we?’re getting. We?’re sick of the township and the city rezonings!

Unfortunately, if you read to the left you?’ll see the old guard is still banking (literally) on plopping more kids in our district at our expense outside city and township limits.

Solution for Pickerington city council: keep doing what you?’re doing! Impact fees, Yes! Cutting back inspection schedules, Yes! Slow down building. Lay off building inspectors! Pickerington doesn?’t have the financial resources to maintain the kind of engineering and inspection staff that they do (or at least that could be your story). And this will choke the ?“new builds?”. Township officials, express extreme resistance to any rezoning. Hold the line. Reduce building inspection schedules and staff, too. Trustees, openly support citizen referendums against PUD rezoning. This is what the public wants! If you can plop $350,000 homes on 1 acre, then by all means do it, but PUDs calling for cookie-cutter homes on ?½ acre plus condos will provoke the masses (us) to merge with the city?… should the city continue the path of fierce resistance. And right now merging means job eliminations and saving taxpayers money! The township needs to get tough because the builders are coming with a vengeance. It?’s going to be put up or shut up. What can we do outside our borders (city, twp.) but still inside PLSD? I don?’t know but I do know there are some very smart people running this web site?… and they, perhaps, do know.

So, the election is over and we have to buy a few more portables - big deal. My kid was in a trailer and she loved it. You actually get better climate control in the summer AND you can leave the building to go to the restroom! Trailers are not that bad - for the short term. But Bruce Rigleman is right, we need to get our collective heads together and beat back these developers or we?’re sunk. Perhaps merge with the city or better?… make THEM pay for a couple of elementary schools! What?’s that, about a $3,700.00 donation to PLSD per home for the next four years. Can the builders afford $3,700.00 donations per home? In my opinion, they can?’t afford not to?…


By john b

%'s don't tell whole story

You should consider the total tax base when you are comparing communities.

The percentage can be lower than Pickerington but the dollars much higher because the total tax bases are much different district to district.

Many of the districts named have a higher cost per pupil than Pickerington. They also have higher commercial tax bases - something that has an impact on the individual property owner in the PLSD.




By Apples and Oranges