By Stephanie Prokop, Staff Writer
BORDENTOWN TOWNSHIP—Bordentown Regional School District is playing the waiting game with the county Board of Elections to find out if the people who received write-in votes cast in the April 15 school election will fill two open seats.
According to Bordentown Regional School District Superintendent Diane DeGiacomo, a number of write-in votes were cast, but the county board is still checking on the legitimacy of each of the names filed.
In the Bordentown Regional School District, four seats were available this year. Ellen Wehrman sought a one-year unexpired term in Bordentown City and Heather Cheesman sought a three-year Bordentown City seat. Both ran unopposed. Ms. Wehrman received 232 votes and Ms. Cheesman received 210 votes. Three-year seats were also available in Bordentown Township and Fieldsboro.
“I think right now they’re just checking to see if the people match up with the names that were written down,” she said.
Voters also defeated the $23 million tax levy by a, 467-462 vote. The school board plans to meet with and municipal officials to negotiate a final budget.
“We anticipate to have a meeting within the next week or so, and we have to get this settled,” said Dr. DeGiacomo.
The deadline to complete negotiations is May 16.
City voters were in favor of the measure, while township and borough voters opposed it.
Including debt service, the proposed tax rate for Bordentown City was $1.251 per $100 of assessed property value. The owner of a house valued at the new average value, $222,994, would have seen a decrease of $101.17 in the school tax bill this year, bringing it to $2,789.
In Bordentown Township, the proposed tax rate was $2.815 per $100 of assessed property. The school tax bill for the owner of the average $132,133 Bordentown Township house would be $56.64 more, or $3,719, under the defeated budget.
In Fieldsboro, where the proposed tax rate was $3.128 per $100 of assessed property value, the owner of the average $86,628 house would have seen an increase of $52.38 this year, or $2,709.
