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Asbury Park Press - School votes fail in Brick, pass in Atlantic Highlands, Manchester, Marlboro Voters in 3 Bergen districts OK school renovation plans -The Record
South Plainfield rejects school referendum 2-1, STAR-LEDGER
Split decisions on school funding - Burlington County Times
September 29, 2009
School votes fail in Brick, pass in Atlantic Highlands, Manchester, Marlboro
STAFF REPORT
Voters in Brick overwhelmingly defeated a $172 million plan to upgrade, renovate and add to the district's 13 schools, but improvement projects were approved in Manchester, Marlboro and Atlantic Highlands.
The four-pronged proposal in Brick was knocked down Tuesday by nearly 2-to-1 on each of the four questions put to voters. More than 9,700 people went to the polls.
"I don't have a problem replacing boilers or windows, but I do have a problem with going way overboard," said voter Tom Barnes, 62, outside Lake Riviera Middle School. "This is going way overboard."
The proposed work was divided into four questions:
• Safety and security, costing $27,920,467, rejected by a vote of 6,550 to 3,228.
• Energy and efficiency, $41,247,304, rejected 6,396 to 3,327.
• Renovations at the Primary Learning Center and the Early Childhood Education Center, $12,767,119, rejected, 6,554 to 2,809.
• Major renovations and additions at Brick Township High School, $90,809,018, rejected 6,182 to 3,589.
School officials have said a lot of the proposed work needs to be completed. General maintenance has been overlooked in the district for years, they added. And, more than $57 million in state grants may dry up as a result of the defeat.
"That money might get sent to other townships. It would be better to keep it here," said Glenn Culos, 40, who voted for the proposals. "If we don't (do the work) now, it will get a lot worse."
Manchester
In Manchester, a $8,375,621 proposal for various school improvements was approved, 3,379 to 2,203.
The project includes roof repairs, carpeting replacement, school buses, playground equipment, and improvements and repairs to the high school auditorium and athletic areas. There also will be bathroom renovations, security upgrades, modular classroom renovations, and energy- and cost-saving measures, including installation of solar panels at the high school.
The township's elementary schools, the middle school and the Board of Education building will also undergo renovations.
Business Administrator Craig Lorentzen said that the tax impact of the referendum will be about $19 per year on a home assessed at $194,100, the township average.
Voters rejected two previous versions of the proposal. This time the Board of Education pared the referendum question down by $1.6 million. State funding and energy grants will pay for 29 percent of the project, leaving the local share at $5.91 million.
Prior to the election, Ada and Seymour Arms said they were in favor of the proposal and were voting for it.
"There are more children in our school system these days and there is a big need for them," said Ada Seymour, 82. "It is so important that we give the children what they need to learn.
"A lot of seniors always say they don't have kids in the school system, so why should they pay. Well, I say to that: Somebody paid for our children to learn way back when."
Robert Fulgara said he was still undecided a short time before casting his vote.
"I voted for it the first two times, but I just haven't quite made up my mind," said Fulgara, 76. "I have a newspaper story on the referendum and I am checking out all the little details. This is a big issue and it's important to be informed."
Marlboro
Marlboro voters approved 1,153 to 428 spending $2 million on a six-classroom expansion at the K-8 district's Frank Defino Central Elementary School.
The expansion will allow the district to replace two, 50-year-old modular units there that house two classrooms each.
"The foundations are cracking, the carpet is held together by tape, students have to walk out of the building (for classes in outside units) in all kinds of weather because they're not attached to the building," said Amy Jacobs, who has two children at Defino.
"We have security cameras but other than that there's a wide open field in the back, and pretty much anyone could be waiting," she said. "It's just not an environment I want my kids to be learning in."
School officials have said that the district has enough money for the project remaining from a $41.9 million referendum passed in 2000 for construction of the Early Learning Center and Marlboro Memorial Middle School. However, voters had to approve the new use of the funds, they said.
Atlantic Highlands
In Atlantic Highlands, voters gave the Board of Education a green light to proceed with its solar power project.
The proposal to spend $606,200 for the project was approved by a vote of 394 to 67.
Christopher Rooney, school superintendent, has said the solar energy panels would save about $50,000 a year in energy cost for the elementary school.
The plan is to have the panels install on the rooftop by next year.
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Voters in 3 Bergen districts OK school renovation plans Tuesday, September 29, 2009 BY GIOVANNA FABIANO The Record STAFF WRITER Voters in three Bergen County school districts overwhelmingly approved more than $30 million in renovation plans Tuesday that would install new roofs, upgrade aging heating systems and install solar panels. School bond referendums in Leonia, Franklin Lakes and Park Ridge passed despite low voter turnout. All three districts sought upgrades that would make buildings more efficient and cut rising energy costs. Leonia: A $20.3 million proposal to install new roofs and upgrade outdated heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems at the district’s three schools passed 614 to 509, Superintendent Bernard Josefsberg said. The referendum will also provide funding to install solar panels on the new roofs. The majority of the cost — about $12.9 million — will go toward HVAC upgrades: renovation or replacement of antiquated generators, hot water heaters, air-quality units and heating units, as well as the installation of air conditioning in older classrooms. Officials said the three buildings — the high school, the middle school and the Anna C. Scott Elementary School — are persistently fraught with leaks, causing serious damage to floors, walls and ceilings. The state will fund more than $8 million of the project, reducing the taxpayer share to about $12 million. The average taxpayer would see an increase of about $217 per year. Park Ridge: Voters approved a $10.67 million bond to pay for new roofs, boilers, windows and solar panels at the district’s three schools. The measure passed 751 to 423, with about 20 percent of the borough’s registered voters turning out, Superintendent Patricia Johnson said. The district plans to replace single-paned windows that offer poor insulation with ones that are double-paned and energy-efficient. Boilers dating back to the 1960s will be replaced with ones with temperature controls that could regulate classroom temperatures. Leaky roofs also will be replaced, according to the district. The district is also adding solar panels to the roofs of all three schools with the hopes of reducing electrical costs and generating revenue by selling credits obtained by producing solar energy to electric companies. District Business Administrator Robert Wright said last week that if voters approved the measure, the district may be able to go out to bid for the projects at the beginning of the year. He estimated that all the work would be completed by the spring of 2011. Assuming the district issues a 20-year bond at a 4.25 percent interest rate, and 40 percent debt service aid from the state, the additional cost to the owner of the average assessed home would be $143.82 a year, according to Wright. Franklin Lakes: A $1.3 million project that includes repairs to roofs, boiler replacements and bathroom renovations passed 492 to 327, with an 11 percent turnout, said Mike Solokas, business administrator. The funding will go towards fixing roofs and changing boilers at the Woodside Avenue School, and installing safety key locks for classroom doors and renovating the bathrooms at Franklin Avenue Middle School, officials said. The project qualifies for 40 percent funding from the state, reducing the taxpayer cost to $28 per year for 8 years for the average homeowner. E-mail: fabiano@northjersey.com. Staff Writer Denisa Superville contributed to this report. |
South Plainfield rejects school referendum 2-1
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
STAR-LEDGER STAFF
AND ELIOT CAROOM
While East Brunswick and many other municipalities around the state approved school referendums yesterday, South Plainfield voters rejected theirs by a margin of more than 2 to 1.
The South Plainfield referendum was turned down, 1,326 to 562. It would have funded about $22 million in renovations for five schools. The bond would have been eligible for $8.8 million in state reimbursements or grants, and the planned work would have included improvements to roofs, windows, boilers and heating and cooling systems.
In East Brunswick, voters approved $18 million in bonds for school construction. The referendum passed, 2,415 to 2,056, and will fund a replacement for fire-scarred Memorial Elementary School.
The two towns' proposals were just a piece of the $440 million worth of projects voted on yesterday in 25 New Jersey school districts.
It's the largest dollar amount for school construction to go before voters since 2005, when the state's multibillion-dollar construction program was starting to dwindle.
The New Jersey School Boards Association, which tracks the referendums, won't have statewide results available until later today.
The organization has said the boom in requests seems to be driven by state aid available for green projects, and the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities' efforts in promoting energy-saving initiatives.
Yesterday -- one of five referendum days being held this year -- voters answered ballot questions that largely involve projects seeking to reduce energy usage.
That type of work was included in 18 of the 25 ballot questions posed on this day, with 10 referendums specifically citing new windows, doors, boilers or HVAC systems, and another eight including solar-panel projects, according to the school boards association.
In East Brunswick, where the district was seeking to replace an elementary school that was damaged by a fire last year, officials asked to sell $18 million in bonds to create a state-of-the-art building featuring a geothermal well and energy-saving materials. The district also had a $4.2 million state grant and $1.6 million in capital reserves for the project.
"Since Day One, we've worked very hard, and we continue to work hard to cut the costs of the project," said East Brunswick school board president Todd Simmens. "I think the public realized that, and it probably led to some of the support we got at the last minute."
Also in the region, Rahway voters narrowly approved $34 million in construction projects for the city's schools, agreeing to work that includes additions and renovations to six buildings. The measure passed, 582 to 519.
Voters were asked to approve $22.8 million in renovations to six schools that include the addition of solar panels. The district got $12.6 million in state aid.
The question included 20,000 square feet of solar panels to be installed at both the middle school and high school, paying for themselves within 10 years, school officials have said.
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Split decisions on school funding
By: MELISSA HAYES
Burlington County Times
Bond referendums in Mount Holly and Riverside were rejected by voters. Initiatives for schools in Hainesport and Shamong were approved.
mhayes@phillyBurbs.com
609-267-5569
School officials in Hainesport and Shamong were celebrating victorious bond referendums Tuesday night while questions in Mount Holly and Riverside, which carried heftier tax hikes, were defeated.
Riverside voters were asked two separate questions pertaining to the Washington Street complex. The first called for $3.48 million in improvements including a new playground, brick wall replacement, parking lot reconstruction, new gym parking, exterior door replacement and other improvements.
A third of the cost would have been covered by state aid. The owner of a home assessed at the township average of $153,000 would have paid about $83 more in school taxes annually. Voters defeated it 336 to 230.
The second question called for landscaping and site work, including reconstruction of the practice fields, replacement of the track and outdoor basketball court, and new sidewalks. The average tax impact was $59. Voters defeated the question 354 to 210.
Riverside Superintendent Robert Goldschmidt said the questions were restructured after being narrowly defeated in the April school election, but still couldn't win voter support.
He said he understands it's hard to ask voters to pay more during the tough economy, but some of the projects still must be done.
"It's not something we just walk away from," he said. "We have to consider some of the projects were very important projects that need to be addressed so the Board of Education and administration are going to have to go back, sit at the table and consider what options there are and what questions we can ask the public."
Mount Holly Business Administrator Dennis Nettleton said he would not have specific numbers until today, but that all four questions were defeated.
It was the district's second attempt at getting the projects approved. After they were defeated in April, the referendum was split into four separate questions. If all four were approved, the owner of a home assessed at the township average of $82,000 would have paid nearly $400 more annually.
The district was seeking funds for roofing and indoor air quality upgrades at all three schools as well as safety and security upgrades, exterior brick work and asbestos removal.
In Shamong, voters approved $2.56 million in construction at Indian Mills Elementary School and Indian Mills Memorial Middle School 309 to 177. The project calls for major renovations and the installation of solar energy panels at the schools.
The owner of a home assessed at the township average of $150,000 will pay $13.25 more in school taxes.
In Hainesport voters overwhelmingly supported the $9.6 million project with a vote of 466 to 215.
The plans call for roof replacement; heating, ventilation and air conditioning upgrades; safety and security upgrades; classroom improvements; exterior building work; drainage and sewer repair; parking lot repaving; and playground and basketball court upgrades.
The state is covering about 40 percent of the cost. The owner of a home assessed at the township average of $162,200 will pay about $24 more in school taxes annually.
"I would like to thank the parents and community who worked tirelessly to make this a reality for the children and I think that an excellent job was put forth by the board of education in communicating the needs of the district to the community as a whole," interim Superintendent Susan Mintz said. "In these hard economic times this is a difficult time to ask for anything and we are so grateful to everyone who made this a reality for all of us."
