Barberton schools Superintendent John Hall, who announced this week that he is retiring in January, has one big hurdle to clear before passing the baton.He hopes voters will approve an 8.74-mill property tax levy on the Nov. 8 ballot that would bring in an additional $3.5 million a year to the district.Hall, 51, will start his fourth year at Barberton this fall and his 14th year as a school superintendent. On Monday, the Barberton school board accepted his contract amendment reflecting his intention to step down, effective Jan. 1.Hall’s base salary is $132,000 a year.“I’m going to step back for at least a couple of months, catch my breath, enjoy my family a little bit and we’ll go from there,” Hall said when asked about his plans.The board might try to hire a new superintendent to take over at midyear or appoint an interim administrator to finish the year and give the board more time to find a permanent replacement, district Treasurer Ryan Pendleton said.Hall’s replacement won’t have to worry about contract negotiations with teachers, who recently agreed to a three-year pact that includes a freeze on both base salary and annual step increases for experience and the attainment of advanced academic degrees.“The teachers deserve a lot of credit,” Pendleton said. “That was a huge sacrifice, and they’re paying additional health care.”Teachers had been paying a fixed amount that was roughly 7.5 percent of the premium, but didn’t adjust for inflation. In the first and second years of their new contract, they’ll pay 10 percent, and in the third year, 12 percent. Those percentages will adjust for inflation, Pendleton said.The district’s school construction program also is well under way. The new middle school will open Sept. 6, the first day of school. Two elementary schools will open next year, replacing the four existing elementary schools.That will leave the total number of district buildings to four, which should save the school system money through increased efficiency.The district had projected a deficit at the end of the 2012-2013 school year and managed to push it back to the following school year.However, expenses already exceed revenue, which means the district is dipping into its surplus to stay solvent.“We’re deficit-spending this year to the tune of $4 million, so we’re quickly eroding our cash balance,” Pendleton said.The district hopes its efforts to rein in personnel costs while boosting academic performance will persuade voters to pass the levy for new money in November.The levy would cost the owner of a $100,000 an additional $268 a year, a 25 percent increase in school taxes.“We know that it will be difficult, but we also know that Barberton is supportive when they understand the urgency, and there’s an urgent need for this one,” Hall said.Last year, the district received its first Excellent rating on the state report card.Although the ratings won’t be official until next week, the district knows it has improved last year’s scores in three areas.“One thing we’re proud of is that a lot of our staff are bringing their children here who did not before,” Hall said. “So that shows you that internally, things are going very well educationally.”John Higgins can be reached at 330-996-3792 or jhiggins@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the education blog at http://education.ohio.com/.