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SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The Syracuse City School District is in dire straits. That's the general consensus coming out of the school board's budget vote Wednesday evening.

The board approved a 365 million dollar budget for the coming school year. 153 positions will be eliminated, 50 through layoffs, the rest through attrition. Elmwood Elementary School will also be closed.

But the biggest problem for the district is how to solve its deficit. Board members opted to borrow $24 million. The district is basically borrowing money from its 2013 to 2014 revenue to balance the budget now.

Board members said the move is certainly not ideal, but it buys them time.

Calvin Corriders, the SCSD Commissioner of Education said, “If we don't borrow the 24 million dollars to balance this budget, we're going to have three-four hundred more cuts in the classroom. We are operating pretty much bare bones right now, to suffer that many additional cuts next year, I don't know how we'd be able to open school."

Board members said if they don't received additional funds or find other ways to save, the cuts next year will be devastating. The district may have to consider closing some of its other poor performing schools.