From the Feb. 28 edition of the Register-News
By:
Coaching staff
bowled over
To the editor:
I would like to thank the Register-News, and in particular Sean Moylan, for the expansive and generous coverage of the Northern Burlington High School bowling teams this past season.
Mr. Moylan’s articles are always positive and reflective of the athletes and their achievements.
The amount of coverage is outstanding and much appreciated by the families of the bowlers as well as the coaching staff.
Chuck and Judy Nuskey
NBC Coaching Staff
Local event
a great success
To the editor:
The Garden State Storyteller’s League Inc., in association with the National Storytelling Network, wishes to thank all the people who worked for, and attended, Tellabration 2001, a worldwide benefit storytelling concert at the Crosswicks Community House in Crosswicks.
We especially thank the Register-News for its continued and excellent coverage for this event of five years duration.
A check for $660 has been sent to each of our three benefit concert recipients. They are : The Chesterfield Historical Society (for restoration of the Singleton House), The Crosswicks Library Building Restoration Fund and the Bordentown Food Bank.
We look forward to seeing everyone at Tellabration 2002.
Gwendolyn Jones
Florence
Carol Satz
Hamilton
Tellabration 2001
co-producers
A further update
on the referendum
To the editor:
Thank you for the recent editorial endorsement of our bond referendum and the continued coverage of this project.
Since over the past few weeks, so much has changed in state government finances, I thought it important to clarify a few issues:
‡ State Aid. The recent budget cuts do not impact on the state aid that has been committed to the district.
Our district has been notified that we will receive close to $10 million for this project.
The governor’s recent cuts were for funds dedicated to the 30 poorest districts. Bordentown Regional is not included in that category.
‡ Bond Total. It is important to note that although our project is about $47 million, the amount that the district will bond is about $37 million.
The district does not bond $47 million, then wait for our state reimbursement.
The district will receive a grant from the state for about $10 million then receive the bond funds of $37 million.
This helps ensure that the district is committed only for the bonding amount.
‡ Appraisals. Some community members have asked, "If a school is built, does it mean my home will be reappraised?" The answer to this question is no.
Municipalities do reappraisals when there are major improvements to a dwelling. Municipalities can also choose to reassess an entire community. We know of no such plan.
‡ Eminent Domain. This is a process that some public bodies can use to secure land.
Our district has always expressed a desire to negotiate with landowners to secure property. We believe negotiations are mutually beneficial.
On the other hand, if eminent domain needs to be utilized, landowners must receive the market value of their properties.
There is a misconception that the school can simply take land and give nothing to the property owner. This is completely false.
We are currently negotiating for a large parcel of land. It is important to note that there are no dwellings on this property.
‡ If We Do Not Build. A number of individuals have asked what would happen if the district does not build. Most readers know that our population continues to grow and we anticipate about 500 more students by 2005-6.
Eventually the district will need to build, but we cannot be sure that state aid will ever be available to this extent again. This would mean that a project would be much more expensive to our residents.
If we do not build, the district would need to resort to such measurements as split sessions and overcrowded classrooms, elimination of programs and displacement of many students in order to meet our needs.
We should note that the district is not permitted to use trailers for classrooms unless there is an approved building plan.
‡ Senior Citizen Taxes. In our literature we mention the tax freeze for senior citizens under the Property Tax Reimbursement Program.
This law freezes taxes for eligible individuals over 65 who have a single income less than $38,475 or a combined income less than $47,177.
This is only one small step to help relieve the burden placed on senior citizens.
We have been asked, "If the taxes are frozen for seniors, does the rest of the community pay the difference?" The answer is no. The state reimburses the municipality for this amount.
Our Citizen Task Force considered over 20 options in order to meet the demands of increasing enrollment. Some have commented that they would like our schools to stay the same as they are at present. Unfortunately, that is not possible.
The plan proposed will help make sure our schools are reasonably sized in order to be personal and caring for all of our students.
Bordentown City, Fieldsboro Borough and Bordentown Township all benefit through this plan because reasonable class size and school size will be maintained.
John Polomano
Superintendent of Schools