BET opens first public hearing on Greenwich's fiscal 2027 budget

Other Committee · Meeting of January 27, 2026

Greenwich's BET opens FY27 budget hearing to packed opposition on school cuts and rink funding. Dozens of residents urged the Board of Estimate and Taxation to reject a Board of Education budget cutting between 6.5 and 7.5 teaching positions at Greenwich High School and four at Central Middle School, and to fund a $43 million Riverside School renovation and a Dorothy Hamill Rink replacement in the fiscal 2027-28 capital plan. GHS PTA co-president Monica Wang said cut positions "are never restored regardless of student needs," while parent John Fischer said the budget was efficient but a "grievous good." Cardinals hockey board member Joe Rothenberg said delaying the 55-year-old rink's replacement "increases risks, increases long-term costs." No votes were taken; the BET said it received the budget books only hours before the hearing and will spend weeks reviewing them.

In the full story:

• The complete report — 797 words

Source: the Other Committee meeting of January 27, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

The Full Article

GREENWICH — January 27, 2026 — Dozens of residents urged the Greenwich Board of Estimate and Taxation Tuesday to reverse proposed teaching cuts, commit $43 million to renovate Riverside School and fold a Dorothy Hamill Rink replacement into the town's fiscal 2027 capital plan, at the first public hearing on next year's municipal and school budgets.

The hearing, which opened at 7:01 p.m. and ran for hours, drew roughly three dozen in-person and Zoom speakers. The BET's presiding chair told the audience the board itself had only just received the budget books and had not previewed the numbers before the public. First Selectman Camillo, Superintendent Dr. Jones and the full Board of Education attended.

The Full Story

Most speakers addressed one of three threads: proposed Board of Education staffing cuts, the long-delayed Riverside School renovation, and replacement of the aging Dorothy Hamill ice rink. Several speakers, including Greenwich High School PTA co-president Monica Wang and Central Middle School PTA representative Carrie Gr, said the proposed Board of Education operating budget would eliminate between 6.5 and 7.5 teaching positions at Greenwich High School, four core academic positions at Central Middle School, and one student-facing administrative position, for a combined 10.5 to 11.5 positions districtwide by various speakers' counts. Wang said Greenwich High School has already lost 11.5 teachers and one administrator over the past three years while central office staffing has grown, and that projected enrollment is down only about 100 students from three years ago.

Riverside parents, staff and the Riverside Association asked the BET to allocate $43 million for construction in the fiscal 2027-28 capital plan, citing a building more than 90 years old with no elevator, undersized common spaces and accessibility gaps. Riverside Principal Jason Martin and Riverside Building Committee member Stephen Pazdak said continued delay would raise construction costs, citing American Institute of Architects estimates of 2 to 3 percent annual project-cost growth. Francis Wu, chair of the PTA council's facilities committee, separately urged approval of an $18 million Board of Education capital budget across 18 line items, including roughly $15 million for a Greenwich High School pool design, a Western Middle School field-lighting project and HVAC work.

A large bloc of speakers, many representing Greenwich Cardinal Youth Hockey Association families, urged the BET to fund replacement of the 55-year-old Dorothy Hamill Rink, following a nine-month task force review that recommended a "modified flip" design. Speakers said the rink is not ADA-compliant, is usable only about six months a year, and has no viable local alternative capacity. Two speakers raised concerns about the process: Lucia Jansen, a former RTM budget overview committee chair, said the task force never produced a promised regional ice-availability survey and that the project's cost estimate had risen from $24 million to roughly $40 million; and Lucy von Brockl, chair of RTM District 4 in Byram, said the task force had not contacted some affected Byram residents, including those on McKenna Terrace.

Selectwoman Rachel Kana, also introduced by the chair as Rachel Connor, asked the BET to fund an energy director position, a Department of Public Works resiliency plan and a Planning and Zoning consultant to update the town's Plan of Conservation and Development. Myra Clackenbrink and Janet Stone Mcwigan separately renewed calls for a sustainability or energy manager position they said would pay for itself through avoided energy costs.

"I come not to praise this budget but to bury it." — John Fischer, Greenwich High School PTA co-president

"Once teaching positions and student-facing administrators are cut, they are gone. In our experience, they are never restored regardless of student needs." — Monica Wang, Greenwich High School PTA co-president

"From a budget perspective, stopping or delaying now doesn't save money. It increases risks, increases long-term costs, and puts established town programs which serve our kids at risk." — Joe Rothenberg, Greenwich Cardinals Youth Hockey board member

Why It Matters

The BET's budget decisions in the coming weeks will determine class sizes and staffing at Greenwich High School and Central Middle School, and whether two long-pending capital projects, the Riverside School renovation and a Dorothy Hamill Rink replacement, move forward or slip further. Riverside advocates want $43 million committed to the fiscal 2027-28 capital plan; rink advocates want the task force's recommended design funded before, several warned, an aging chiller system fails and shuts the rink down entirely. Several speakers linked the hearing to November's municipal election, which changed the BET's composition.

Key Motions & Votes

No formal votes were taken on budget matters at this meeting; the board is still reviewing the newly released budget books.

- Vote: Motion to adjourn the public hearing Tally: Approved unanimously

Source

Greenwich Community Television: Board of Estimate and Taxation meeting, January 27, 2026