Holmdel 2020: Holmdel Residents Asked To Approve $40M School Improvement Plan

HOLMDEL, NJ — On September 26, Holmdel Township residents will be asked to approve a $40.3 million spending initiative for its public schools. The vote will be presented in the form of a public referendum. Superintendent Dr. Robert McGarry says the money will be spent on a wide variety of educational, infrastructure and academic improvements at all four schools in the district.

The improvements will take several years to complete. If the September referendum passes, construction will not begin until June of 2018 and it won't be completed until Sept. 2020, hence the project's nickname, the Holmdel 2020 Initiative. It's such a big project because it's more cost-effective to budget many of the upgrades together and put them out to bid as a group, says Dr. McGarry, rather than spread them out as small improvements over many years.

If the referendum passes, the average Holmdel property owner will see a projected $159 increase in their school property taxes (on the average Holmdel home assessed at $657,288); although that number may go up or down as financing is secured. The Holmdel Board of Education will also sell bonds to finance the projects and is currently looking to secure additional aid from the state to help pay for it. Holmdel schools already receive very little in state aid. Holmdel will also be available for debt service to offset the costs, the district said.

On the athletics side, projects include:

• Better draining for the four rear sports fields at Satz/Holmdel High
• Relocating the tennis courts; the current tennis courts will be reverted back to a grassy area
• Refurbishing the basketball courts
• Replacing the turf at Roggy Field
• Resurface the running track
• Replacing the current gym floors at Village and Indian Hill with new wood floors

Many of the changes are infrastructure improvements to school buildings, which the district says are badly needed. Special emphasis will be on updating Satz Middle School, which opened in 1968. For example, 7th and 8th grades at Satz will be getting science labs, which they currently don't have. A Robotics Room will also be added. The annual schools budget has provided for the following building improvements in the past:

• Window replacements at all four schools
• Partially replacing the roof at Village School and Holmdel High School
• HVAC replacements at Indian Hill
• Adding security doors at all four schools
• Repaving and parking lot improvements at Satz/Holmdel High
• Auditorium upgrades at Holmdel High

But the improvements go far beyond that. For example, the wrestling room at Holmdel High School will be converted to a TV studio. The shop room will be converted into a graphic design and engineering lab. The locker rooms at Satz will be renovated. Doors need to be replaced at the elementary schools and the corridors at Indian Hill badly need to be replaced, the district says, which provided photos to prove why they think Holmdel 2020 is necessary.

“We are at a critical moment for our district,” said Dr. McGarry. “We can’t allow aging and outdated facilities to place limits on what our students are capable of achieving, whether it be in a science lab, a media center, or on a playing field, track or tennis court."

On Tuesday, the Holmdel school district launched the Holmdel 2020 Initiative website, which explains the project's costs and other information: https://sites.google.com/holmd...

From the Holmdel school district:

When is the Referendum vote taking place?

Registered Holmdel voters will have the opportunity to cast their vote on the 2020 Initiative on Tuesday September 26, 2017 from 4-8 p.m.

What is the anticipated/estimated tax impact for this project?
The total cost of the project is $40.3 million. The estimated tax impact, if voters approve the referendum, will be a $159 increase on the average assessed home (a home assessed at $657,288 in Holmdel).

What is the total cost of the project?
The total cost is $40.3 million. The tax impact of the project is lessened by the following factors: retiring of existing debt, debt service aid and, low interest rates.

What if costs end up higher than the estimates?
The experts advising the district have prepared cost estimate proposals with a comfortable margin to address those unanticipated increases in project costs. The contingency built into the budget for this project is intended to address any unanticipated cost overruns. By law, the project cannot expend funds in excess of what has been approved by the voters.

Learn more here: https://sites.google.com/holmd... or email any questions to Holmdel2020@holmdelschools.org.