District stumps for $9.8M bond

The Lawrence school district is taking their case for voter approval of a $9.8 million bond referendum on the road.

By: Lea Kahn
   Lawrence School District officials are taking their case for a $9.8 million bond referendum on the road.
   The bond, which would pay for new roofs, new windows and new floors, is being explained through a series of presentations before school groups, leading up to the referendum’s Dec. 12 vote.
   Schools Superintendent Philip Meara and Business Administrator Thomas Eldridge visited Benjamin Franklin Elementary School’s Parent Teacher Organization last week, and there are plans to visit more PTO’s throughout the month.
   As a selling point, Mr. Meara said the state has agreed to pick up 40 percent of the tab, or $3.9 million of the $9.8 million bond. The cost to the owner of a house assessed at the township average of $164,000 would be $44.28 per year, or $3.69 per month he said.
   The current school district tax rate is $2.05 per $100 of assessed valuation. Of that amount, 9 cents goes toward paying off the school district’s $31.5 million in existing debt, or $147.50 on the average house. If the bond referendum is approved, it would add 3 cents to the tax rate to cover debt service.
   The proposed bond referendum is a health and safety referendum, Mr. Meara said to the dozen parents and teachers at the Nov. 1 PTO meeting. No plans to build additional classrooms or other spaces are in the works, he said.
   "This is all we need to do to bring our schools up to our standards," Mr. Meara said.
   The money also would be used to pay for new windows for Lawrence High School, Lawrence Intermediate School and Benjamin Franklin Elementary School. Asbestos floor tiles in all of the district’s seven schools need to be replaced to comply with modern safety standards.
   Mr. Eldridge said all of the schools have asbestos floor tiles that have come loose and that have been replaced, but school district officials want to remove all of the tiles and replace them with new ones. He added that asbestos floor tiles do not present a health hazard. The cost of replacing the floor tiles districtwide is $1.9 million.
   This proposed bond referendum follows on the heels of a $37.2 million bond approved by voters in 2002. School district officials are currently wrapping up the construction and improvements that were funded by the 2002 bond referendum, including additions to LHS and the Lawrenceville and Ben Franklin elementary schools.
   At LHS, the plan is to replace portions of the roof that leak, Mr. Eldridge said, at an estimated cost of $2.6 million.
   Windows at the high school also would be replaced, at an estimated cost of $1.5 million. The windows are nonenergy-efficient single-pane windows that do not open fully, causing a lack of ventilation, he said.
   "I wouldn’t have it at my house, and I wouldn’t have it in my school," Mr. Eldridge told the audience.
   New roofs also are needed at the Eldridge Park, Lawrenceville and Slackwood elementary schools, he said. The estimated cost of new roofs at the three schools is $654,888 for Eldridge Park, $765,363 for Lawrenceville and $535,423 for Slackwood.
   Staff members must place protective covers over the computers in some classrooms to keep them dry when it rains, he said. A tarpaulin has been placed underneath a leak at the Lawrenceville Elementary School, and students jokingly call it their magic carpet, he added.
   Parents at last week’s meeting were supportive of the proposed referendum.
   Tracy Kocsis, with children in both Benjamin Franklin and Lawrence Intermediate, said the average homeowner would act quickly to repair their own roofs if they were leaking.
   Steve Schwarz, who has a child in kindergarten at Benjamin Franklin Elementary School, said he thought the presentation was helpful.
   "I like the way the district has big plans," Mr. Schwarz said. "They do things in phases. We know it’s expensive, but the state is going to help. That’s very positive for us."
   Mr. Eldridge told the PTO that school district officials considered asking for more money in the 2002 bond referendum, but did not think it would be approved by the voters. Officials decided to seek a smaller amount to pay for what the district deemed to be priorities.
   "Now, we need to do the rest of what we wanted to do," he said. "It’s time."