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February - March 2003 Edition
The Referendum: An Editorial Apparently, the residents turned down the referendum because they were not convinced that the high school needed to be expanded as much as proposed. We make this observation based on interviews, letters to Fair Lawn News, and the postings in the Fair Lawn News Discussion Forum. The Schools Superintendent and the Board should be applauded for their efforts to explain the referendum. They met with residents, published questions and answers, set up a hotline, and produced a short video. Although some people may criticize this use of resources, it was critically important for voters to understand the $38 million proposal. The problems associated with a surging school population are not going away. Clearly, Warren Point must get their students out of the trailers and Radburn School needs a cafeteria. Before the next referendum, the Board should share more information about the issues, the needs, the state requirements, and their educational goals. In order for residents to make a more informed decision, the Board of Education should more fully explain these questions: 1. What were the alternatives, what was ruled out and why? The Board of Education, its architects and its professional staff spent countless hours considering various alternatives. Tell us more about them.
2. How are the high school's space needs different today? Why exactly does a New Jersey high school need more space than a high school did twenty or thirty or forty years ago?
3. What happens if the residents vote down the referendum? If the high school is not expanded there are various doomsday options. What are they? Fair Lawn News was set up to help people identify problems and then debate potential solutions. We will be here to help inform the upcoming debate.
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