The six candidates running for four seats on the Mt. Lebanon school board were prompted to enter the race in part by their outrage over the district's $500,000-plus separation agreement in November with former Superintendent Margery Sable.

That issue, they concede, appears to have faded from the spotlight.

In recent months, the board has discussed a capital construction project at the high school to be undertaken within the next several years and all of the candidates said they would like to sit on the board to oversee the details and the costs of that project.

Five of them said they would like to get on the board in time to put the brakes on a proposal to build a free-standing natatorium that would house a 25-meter, 10-lane pool at the high school campus. The estimated price of that project recently increased from $5 million to $6.5 million.

The candidates are Mark Hart, 41, and Alan Silhol, 49, who won Democratic and Republican nominations in the primary; Josephine Posti, 37, and Faith Stipanovich, 45, who won Democratic nominations; and Dan Remely, 54, and incumbent Rodney Shepherd, 48. who won Republican nominations in the primary.

Mr. Hart, Mr. Remely, Mr. Silhol and Mr. Shepherd are running on a ticket called The Committee for Value in Education. Their platform is that they will attempt to provide a high-quality education while keeping a harness on finances.

Ms. Posti and Ms. Stipanovich are running on their own and have a similar theme to their campaigns.

One of the four open seats belongs to Mr. Shepherd, a lawyer in private practice. The others are those of school Director Ron Hoffman, who failed to win a party nomination in the primary, and Directors Jean Palcho and James Blazeck, who did not run for re-election.

All six candidates say they want to keep track of district finances in budgets and capital projects.

They point to what they call cost overruns in the renovation of the district's seven elementary schools, which had a projected cost of about $45 million and an actual cost of about $52 million. They say the same thing will happen with the natatorium project.

"The financial issues have changed since May. The big things now are what is happening with the natatorium and what will be happening with the high school," said Ms. Posti, who owns an advertising and public relations firm.

Ms. Posti, Mr. Hart, Mr. Remely, Mr. Silhol and Mr. Stipanovich said they believed it would be prudent for the district to build a pool when it undertakes major renovation at the high school rather than carry through with plans to build a free-standing natatorium on a field across from the high school.

Shepherd said he'd "been having second thoughts about the pool" in recent weeks, even before the price estimate escalated to $6.5 million, and that he now "would lean toward making it part of the high school renovation."

Shepherd said he believed the district should switch architects before it embarks on its planning for the high school, an action supported by his running mates and Ms. Stipanovich.

Burt Hill Kosar Rittelman Associates is the architect handling plans for the pool and the elementary school renovation project.

The candidates criticized the architect for presenting pool plans to the board through the course of the winter and spring without informing school directors that a variance would be required for the structure they had designed.

The board learned that in August, when Burt Hill representatives told school directors the variance they had sought had been turned down. The board is waiting until January to see if the municipal board of commissioners will adopt an amendment to its zoning ordinance to allow the natatorium as designed.

Some school directors are having second thoughts about going ahead with the project. They learned last week that the price estimate had risen to $6.5 million.

Ms. Stipanovich and Mr. Remely said the district had paid Burt Hill for plans for a pool that isn't likely to be built.

District Finance Director Jan Klein said that, since pool discussions started several years ago, Burt Hill had been paid $224,000. Of that, $156,000 was spent before the 2004-05 school year.

Candidates blame the architect, in part, for the cost overruns at the elementary schools and Mr. Hart and Mr. Remely said the firm had to take at least part of the blame for what they characterized as excessive change orders on the renovation project.

Mr. Hart is the director of business and chief financial officer for the Pittsburgh Steelers and, as such, oversaw the construction of Heinz Field. Mr. Remely is president of H-Squared Properties Inc., a real estate development and redevelopment firm.

Both said their professional experience would benefit the board in building and renovation projects

Mr. Remely said he had extensive experience in asbestos abatement which will prove useful in the high school renovation. He is critical of the number of change orders on asbestos abatement at the elementary schools.

"I can tell you from our experience at Heinz Field, you have to be very proactive and have a hands-on approach with any construction project. Someone has to be accountable every step of the way," Mr. Hart said.

All the candidates said they believed George Wilson, who was appointed superintendent in July, is a qualified superintendent who will run the district well.

But all of them, with the exception of Mr. Shepherd, said they would have preferred the board had done a search before selecting him.

Ms. Stipanovich, payroll manager for the Allegheny County controller's office, said she was made aware that an e-mail was circulating in the community pointing out that she is not a property owner and does not pay taxes. She said she'd heard criticism because she has no children.

She said was aware of the pressures on taxpayers because her parents and other relatives are property owners in the municipality, and that she believes she will be able to make impartial decisions as a school director because she won't have to consider how they would affect her child.

Both Ms. Posti, and Mr. Silhol, who is chief counsel for the real estate division of American Eagle Outfitters Inc., said people they talk to are worried about real estate taxes. "They are upset about the assessments and about the school board's spending," Silhol said.

Posti said whoever gets elected to the board has to ask: "How can we make this an affordable place to live?"

In addition to the issues raised by all the candidates, Mr. Remely said another priority is to improve the district's special education services. "There are too many [individualized education plans] not being met and too many children that we need to do more for. Parents should not have to fight the school district to get a proper education for their child," he said.

Ms. Posti hopes to learn why there is a disparity in standardized test scores in the district's seven elementary schools, with Lincoln and Washington schools tending to produce higher scores.

Mr. Hart said that, although the furor has died down over Ms. Sable's separation agreement, he still planned as a first order of business to find out why Ms. Sable was asked to resign "and to disclose what happened so that we never make the same mistake again."

Ms. Posti has spent about $4,500 on her campaign. Ms. Stipanovich said she had spent about $1,500 but planned to spend about $3,500. The Committee for Value in Education has spent about $12,600.