Wall schools set $66 million referendum for December vote
WALL – Residents will be asked to approve more than $66 million in school improvement projects under a referendum slated for a December vote, the Board of Education announced.
If fully approved, the ballot measure would increase taxes by about $60 per year for the homeowner of an average assessed property.
The ballot measure, which will include two separate questions, seeks approval for projects ranging from fire alarm upgrades to roof repairs, according to a presentation before the school board.
“These are things that we have to do, and if we tried to fund it through the school budget, it would take 26 to 30 years to complete,” said board President Ralph Addonizio. “We have roofs that leak. We have smoke alarm systems we can’t get parts for, and this is the appropriate time to do it.”
Specifically, the board authorized two questions to be placed before voters on Dec. 13.
The first question seeks approval for $53.1 million in projects, with $18 million of that amount coming from matching state grants. Addonizio said the remaining amount would be raised through debt bonds, paid back via the district budget.
He said that portion would not increase taxes because it would replace a $40 million 1998 referendum that is about to be paid off.
But the second question, which seeks authorization for an additional $13 million in projects, would impact taxpayers at a rate of about $60 per year for an average home assessed at $483,357. The district would receive about $2 million in state aid toward those projects.
The multi-part ballot measure has been used elsewhere, most recently in the Freehold Regional High School District, which broke its $42 million referendum in 2019 into three separate questions. Those measures failed.
Freehold Regional was successful in 2021 with a much smaller $14.65 million referendum to fund roof and parking lot repairs at each school. That passed with 59% of the vote in favor.
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Wall school officials have launched an intense campaign to get the projects approved, hiring a public relations firm last month for $50,000, posting a YouTube video with details about the improvements and recently sending a letter to parents explaining the campaign.
A new section also has been created on the district webpage to offer information and background.
“The primary reason for holding a bond referendum now is that the district has needs at this very moment,” the joint letter from Addonizio and Superintendent Tracy Handerhan said.
While the exact projects are still being chosen, the board recently released a list of some of the improvements, which would affect all seven district schools.
Those include roof replacements, improving heating and cooling systems, modernizing restrooms, upgrading electrical systems, renovating auditoriums and other facilities, and maintaining and improving some athletic facilities.
“At the end of the day, people moved to Wall Township because it is a beautiful town It is well run and we have great schools, and that is due to the staff and the investment we put in them,” Addonizio said. “If we cannot put that investment in the schools, property values will suffer.”
Joe Strupp is an award-winning journalist with 30 years’ experience who covers education and several local communities for APP.com and the Asbury Park Press. He is also the author of three books, including Killing Journalism on the state of the news media, and an adjunct media professor at Rutgers University and Fairleigh Dickinson University. Reach him at jstrupp@gannettnj.com and at 732-413-3840. Follow him on Twitter at @joestrupp
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Wall NJ voters asked to support December school referendum
