Chariho school budget includes up to $875,000 in savings if Hope Valley Elementary closes; voters to decide in April referendum

Chariho Regional School District officials at a regional finance meeting reviewed a proposed budget that assumes closing Hope Valley Elementary at the end of the school year and includes potential savings of up to $875,000, and they approved establishing a regional school district building committee and a $15,000 transfer to that committee.

The proposed budget — as approved previously by the school committee on Feb. 11, 2025 — set the district’s fiscal-year budget at $69,765,604. Committee members said if the committee finalizes $875,000 in cuts tied to the Hope Valley closure, the recommended FY2026 budget would be $68,890,604 and the combined member-town contribution with debt service would change from an overall increase of 2.67% to an overall increase of 0.68%, with the following town-level impacts: Charlestown,…