BY JENNIFER KOHLHEPP
Staff Writer
NORTH BRUNSWICK — Officials will answer residents’ referendum questions during a special meeting Tuesday night.
The North Brunswick Township Board of Education will host an Information Night at 7 p.m. in the Media Center at Linwood Middle School, 25 Linwood Place, to discuss a proposed $32.4 million bond referendum for renovations to township public schools.
“Residents will have the opportunity to discuss this project, one on one, with board members, the project architect and building administrators so they can make a better-informed decision when casting their vote,” Marshall Sigall, the board’s business administrator, said.
On Jan. 25, voters from North Brunswick can visit their polling stations from 2 to 9 p.m. to vote for or against funding renovations to the township’s four elementary schools and the middle school.
If approved, the project would increase property taxes approximately $70 per year for a homeowner with a house assessed at the township average of $154,700, Sigall said.
The state would fund $7.6 million of the project, Sigall said.
“The timing of this referendum positions the district to take advantage of an opportunity to recoup 24 percent of the total project cost from the state of New Jersey under the Educational Facilities Construction and Financing Act,” Superintendent Robert Rimmer said. “However, the district will only receive the state money if voters approve the referendum.”
Rimmer said the project would meet projected school population needs through the 2009-10 school year.
“The proposed bond referendum addresses the need for additional classroom space to accommodate the growing student population and current and future needs in the changing education program,” Rimmer said.
Proposed improvements at the elementary schools include additional regular, special education and small-group instruction classrooms, resource facilities, art and music rooms, and core facilities, Rimmer said.
“Not only will the proposed additions and renovations provide more space for our students and improve educational programs, but they will also allow the district to offer a full-day kindergarten program and keep our special education students in-district,” Rimmer said.
The proposed renovations also include the addition of four preschool classrooms at Judd Elementary School on Roosevelt Avenue and a new wing at Linwood Middle School, Rimmer said.