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Benefit scheduled for Saline woman fighting leukemia See Page 4-B

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Saline Reporter
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2012 Weave the Web:
received the sobering news Feb. 14 that the school district is about to exhaust its fund balance and needs to find ways to attract more students, while cutting costs as much as possible. The district is running about a $1.5 million deficit as costs have risen and its student count has fallen to 5,325 in the most recent blended count. Interim Finance Director Janice Warner brought the amended budget to the board for approval. Comparing the budget approved in June to the amended document, Warner showed the board how the district has seen its fund balance drop from $2.75 million down to a
PLEASE SEE DEFICIT/3-A
Photo by Jim Pruitt

The

Your Hometown Newspaper

75

VOL. 62, NO. 8

Saline school district facing decit

Schools are operating $1.5M in red
By Jim Pruitt
Special Writer

Make sure to click on www.heritage.com around the clock for the most in-depth coverage. See our Most Viewed story, Michiganders rate Ann Arbor states most popular city.

Bleeding money and students, Saline Area School officials know they have a lot of work to do to get their financial house in order. The Board of Education

Saline Superintendent Scot Graden and Board President Lisa Slawson discuss a point about the budget.

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Ancient Egypt Family Day Weekly Police Blotter

Oakwood Cemetery project is approved

By Jim Pruitt
Special Writer

Work will proceed at Oakwood Cemetery to add new crypts and niches. The Saline City Council accepted a report from the Cemetery Task Force recommending the city proceed with the installation of 88 crypts. The decision keeps intact the original decision to add the extra burial slots. The task force was charged with reviewing work a previous task force had done and to determine if the upcoming project should be shelved and
PLEASE SEE CEMETERY/13-A

Hello Dolly coming to Saline

Cast members from Saline High Schools production of Hello Dolly performed some songs at the Board of Education meeting Feb. 14. The show runs March 24 through 26. There are more than 100 high school students involved, including 42 in the cast, 25 in the pit, 15 technicians and some from the culinary arts program. The play is directed by Rebecca Groeb-Driskill. Above, Austin Terris, (Barnaby), Jackson Marchlewski (Horace) and Aaron Murkerjee perform a number.

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Public weighs in on attributes of next police chief

By Jim Pruitt
Special Writer

Local residents gathered Feb. 15 at City Hall to share their ideas on the attributes the next police chief should possess. Hosted by City Manager Todd Campbell, more than 20 residents attended the community forum to tell the citys recruiter the skills and attributes the next police chief should

have. The forum completed the first leg in the citys search for a new chief. The opening came about when Chief Paul Bunten retired in January. Michael Lindman is serving as the interim police chief until the city can find a full-time leader. Lindman is not eligible for the full-time job. Participants, including the entire City Council and some city staff, spent

nearly an hour telling consultant Terry McGinn their thoughts and ideas. McGinn will compile those comments and those from other meetings with the Saline Police Department and other city department heads and turn them into six to eight competencies by which applicants will be judged. Based on a sampling of comments, the next police chief needs to be a good

listener, open to new ideas, possess a modern skill set for law enforcement, proactive, visible in the community, supportive of his officers and not view the job as a stepping stone. Campbell said residents comments were great and showed the dedication of the community by coming out in the middle of the week. The value of the publics comments was not lost on the city manager.

The key is to find out what people want, he said. We are going to get all sorts of qualified candidates with degrees and experience, but we may have somebody that maybe doesnt have as many degrees potentially, but they are that great fit, for the organization for the department, for the city. Campbell expects to get
PLEASE SEE CHIEF/13-A

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Heritage Media in producing a package in March called Whats Next. Reporters have sought out experts to examine issues related to business, government, transit, the environment, education and other issues. Look for the four-part section to begin printing March 1, and look for the entire package online at www.Heritage. com. Comment on the project on our website or on Facebook.

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Bloggers sought: The Saline Reporter is seeking community bloggers to write on a variety of subjects. To pitch a blog idea or share a current blog, which would be featured at www.Heritage.com, email Heritage Online Coordinator David Veselenak at dveselenak@heritage.com. Watch for Whats Next Michigan: The Milan News-Leader and The Saline Reporter will join sister publications at

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