This upcoming November’s elections will be the key to make sure the LeRoy Community Pool stays afloat.

The group that operated the LeRoy Community Pool informed the LeRoy-Ostrander District that they would return the operations of the pool back over to the school (it is part of the school facility) since donations weren’t reaching levels needed to operate, according to Superintendent Jeff Sampson. Originally, the pool was part of the school facility that was built by the district.

“During a round of school district cuts quite a few years ago, the pool operations were turned over to a community group,” he said. “It was funded off of donations from area people and off of revenue that was brought in for usage of the pool.”

When the donations weren’t reaching what levels they had in the past, the pool soon fell short on operating funds. The LeRoy-Ostrander School cannot make up operating expenses without either cutting what it currently has for operations to make the pool fit, or the district needs to raise more dollars through an operating levy.

Sampson stated that the board decided that it needed to ask taxpayers to support raising the levy to what was needed to operate the pool, to which the superintendent said that the community generally supported this based on a community survey.

“(The community) wants to make sure the funds will only be used for the pool operations and pool maintenance,” he said. “Operating levy dollars are general fund money, so the board will have to reserve those dollars each year for its budget. Recently, the school board stated that the intent of the school board was to use the money for the pool.”

So, the question that would appear on the ballot would ask the public to approve a $494 per pupil increase to its operating levy, and the dollars raised would help continue to operate the pool and provide maintenance for the pool.

Previously, the LeRoy-Ostrander School Board voted 7-0 to go out for the operating levy increase, which indicates support for the motion.

“If the operating levy passes, this will provide the dollars needed to keep the pool open,” Sampson said. “If it doesn’t pass, the school will need to evaluate what it needs to do next as expenditures will override revenues for the pool.”