February - March 2002 Edition

Planning For Expansion   By Philip Zimmerman, CPA, APM  One of the most important planning jobs for our schools started in 2001 and will continue to take place in Room 19 of the Edison School every Thursday evening at 7:15 PM until the end of February. This planning follows a needs study of all of the schools conducted by the Board of Education under its President Ed Carter. It has come up with a long-range plan to take care of the high school population increase, to help the schools comply with state mandated standards for new schools, to make the schools up to date 21st Century schools and to maintain and improve our children’s education.  New Jersey’s state government has approved a Long-Range Facilities Plan that would grant local school districts up to 40 percent of the state approved cost of certain expansion and improvement programs. The Board has tentative approval to prepare plans for its program and is trying to obtain final approval for the plans and the state funding while a window of opportunity is open under this program. Due to the current state budget shortfall, this program, along with many other local aid programs, may be curtailed or ended. Fair Lawn’s share of the cost would have to come from the proceeds of the contemplated Fair Lawn School bond issue. The bond issue’s principal amortization and interest would have to be paid annually over its life. This is usually 20 to 30 years. The source of these payments would be an increase in school taxes.  High School  A demographic study of the high school indicated that the current student population of 1500 would grow to approximately 1620 by 2004. As the high school was found to have the greatest need for expansion and improvement, the Board has gone furthest in planning for this. The Board’s current thinking is to have a voter referendum on its plan in September 2002. After it passes, construction plans could be drawn and construction started in 2003. This is expected to be completed for the school year beginning September 2004.    The high school plan contemplates adding more classrooms to take care of the greater number of students and to reduce the current excessive utilization rate for the classrooms, another gym, a new music rehearsal room, enlarging the cafeteria so that all students may eat at the same time, renovating and enlarging the science and media rooms and improving the flow of traffic in the now greatly overcrowded corridors.    Preliminary cost estimates submitted to the Board by its architectural consultants, Lan Consultants Inc., are slightly above $20 million. Board Secretary and Business Administration Executive, Raymond R. Jacobus, said that the Board is assuming that it will receive back from the state the maximum of 40 percent of this cost or $8 million.  Along with the capital improvements, Superintendent of Schools, Bruce Watson, estimated that there would be a need for an additional 25 teachers at an annual cost of $1.7 million. Without these additional rooms and teachers, students would be in larger classes and not able to have electives due to the new state mandated educational requirements and the anticipated larger student population.     In addition to the expansion plan, Assistant Superintendent of Schools for Education, Dr. Charles Khoury, has recommended to the Board a new education plan. This Academy Program has improved the education level of students in other high schools and would become feasible when the facilities improvement program was completed.  Elementary and Middle Schools  The needs of these schools were found to be different. The demographic study indicated that the elementary school student population is expected to decrease from the current 2100 to 1740 in 2006. However, some of these schools need new or enlarged facilities for such things as media centers to bring them up to state mandated levels for new schools. Preliminary cost estimates to take care of all the needs of the six schools range from $10 million to $15 million before a 40 percent potential reimbursement from the state.   Some of the elementary schools have a greater need for immediate facilities improvement. The two middle schools did not have any immediate need for the improvement of facilities.  Remaining for the Board to discuss and decide by the end of February are the final decision on high school improvements and what to do first in the other schools under its Long- Range Facilities Plan. These important discussions will enable the Board to decide on the size and life of the bond issue and the resulting impact on annual school taxes.      What Do You Think?: Send an e- mail to editor@fairlawnnews.com or post a message on the Fair Lawn News Discussion Forum.