Albany board accepts child‑safety zone study, puts K–5 one‑mile transportation proposition on May ballot
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Summary
The Albany City School District Board accepted a study finding the city qualifies as a child safety zone and voted unanimously to place a May proposition to expand K–5 busing to students living 1.0–1.49 miles from school; the board and staff said the first year would require a roughly 1.22% levy increase locally before about 80% state reimbursement in subsequent years.
The Albany City School District Board voted unanimously Thursday to accept a child‑safety‑zone study and place a ballot proposition in May asking voters to authorize transportation for students in kindergarten through grade five who live 1.0 to 1.49 miles from their assigned school.
Dorett Miles, who presented the transportation study, said a hazard‑based point analysis conducted with the group On the Bus gave the district 24 points, double the 12 required to qualify for an expanded transportation designation. "That means every student in our district at every school qualifies for expanded transportation under this framework," Miles said during the presentation.
Why it matters: the designation makes the district eligible for state reimbursement of roughly 80% of reimbursable transportation costs in later years, but the district must front the full cost in year one. Miles outlined scenarios ranging from a full expansion (affecting about 5,400 students and requiring roughly 114 additional buses with multi‑million‑dollar annual costs) to a narrowed 1.0–1.49‑mile option he recommended as operationally feasible for K–5 students. Under the board's preferred targeted approach Miles said the district would add about 400 students to current operations with a long‑term local cost of about $300,000 annually.
Board members pressed staff on logistics and vendor readiness. Member Wolfgang asked whether schools have physical space in bus loops and whether the district has discussed adding bus capacity or changing dismissal patterns; Miles said staff will look at staggered dismissals and using different entry points and that vendors are planning for annual scale‑up. Board member Savage, who has advocated for the change for years, expressed support for the phased plan and requested a clear slide that shows the projected tax impact. Finance staff later stated the first‑year levy impact would be about 1.22% for the district.
Public comment before the vote emphasized safety concerns around Pine Hills Elementary and other neighborhoods. In emailed and in‑person comments, parents and the Pine Hills PTA president urged universal elementary busing or at least a half‑mile standard, citing icy sidewalks, traffic congestion and unsafe crossings.
The motion to accept the study and place the transportation proposition on the May ballot passed without opposition. President Sridhar Chitur called the vote "a historical step for us," noting the change followed years of advocacy and recent state regulatory updates.
Next steps: if voters approve the proposition in May the district would adopt the child safety zone and begin year‑one implementation planning; after year one the board expects state aid to cover a majority of recurring operating costs. The board and staff said they will continue to evaluate phasing and dismissal logistics and pursue vendor and CDTA negotiations as part of implementation planning.
