HILLSDALE—A newly released video on why residents should vote to approve the $82.7 million bond referendum to replace George G. White Middle School was sent to parents and posted on the district website as school officials continue to press for the referendum’s passage.
Moreover, a second walk-through tour of the aged middle school classrooms and facilities is planned for Saturday, March 4, so that residents can see for themselves why the school should be replaced, school officials said.
Registered voters will vote yes or no on Tuesday, March 14, from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. at two polling sites to decide the issue.
District officials estimated the bond’s tax impacts will average approximately $1,140 annually, or $95 per month on Hillsdale’s average home assessed at $474,172. The tax impacts would likely start in the 2024-2025 tax year, said officials.
If the bond referendum passes, the district also receives $5.4 million in state aid.
Superintendent Robert Lombardy said the first walk-through at the school on Saturday, Feb. 11 was such a “positive experience” that the district wanted to do it again.
He said the question most asked was, What happens if the referendum doesn’t pass? “As I have explained many times, doing nothing is not a viable option because the district is out of space, out of date and out of time,” said Lombardy.
He said, “If March 14 yields a no vote, the Board of Education will step back to the starting point of determining how to meet the needs for quality instructional space and functional, efficient building systems. We cannot fund any large-scale capital improvements within the annual operating budget, so the process would culminate with another referendum in 12 to 18 months.”
School officials and trustees have repeatedly stressed that renovations cannot address the middle school’s numerous educational and physical deficits, including undersized classrooms, that plague the school and affect student learning.
Lombardy told Pascack Press Feb. 17, “The video was released early this week. I personally shared the link with the Board of Education and staff, and also sent it to our database of parent email addresses. We don’t have that kind of database for all taxpayers.”
The video features Lombardy, BOE President Nicole Klas, and BOE Grounds and Buildings Chair Justin Saxon. Saxon describes small classrooms, outdated science classrooms, “ancient” restrooms, old heating and electrical systems, an undersized gym/cafeteria.
“George White was built for students in Kindergarten through eighth grade, not the nearly 500 middle schoolers who use it today,” Saxon says at one point.
In the video, Lombardy notes the proposed new middle school “would meet or exceed New Jersey’s current learning standards.”
Klas ticked off benefits of a new middle school including a new HVAC system, upgraded security, larger, right-sized classrooms, and dedicated spaces for music, art, science and STEM classes.
Moreover, Saxon said, a new school would include a properly sized gymnasium, more efficient traffic flow, “and welcoming spaces for both community and student use.”
Concluding the video, Lombardy said, “To learn more, start by visiting the website at hillsdaleschools.com/referendum. To do more, please make the time to vote in this bond referendum.”
He said the video was also posted on the district’s Twitter account @HPS_District. Lombardy said he hoped people might share the video, attend the final George White walk-through 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday March 4, and plan to vote on March 14 or via mail-in ballot.
Lombardy said the new four–minute video details “the daily challenges that come with a 100-year-old middle school, and why it is the right time to move our Hillsdale students and community forward with a modern, right-sized school.”
Should the upcoming $82.7 million bond referendum be approved on March 14, a financial adviser told an online bond referendum forum in January that it was likely the bonds would be refinanced at least twice over the bond’s 30-year term, reducing bond interest costs and lowering property taxes on residents.