Referendum Facts
A. General Building Repairs and Improvements
$5,314,431
·
Exterior doors district-wide
·
Paving- FNB, VHS, Forest, HBW
·
Masonry repairs- VHS, Forest, HBW, Brookdale
· Fire
Alarms- FNB and Forest
· Hall
and Classroom Ceilings and Lighting- VHS
·
Addition to accommodate VHS Music Program
· Gym
Bleachers- VHS and Brookdale
B. Technology $889,086
· New
wired and wireless (Wi-Fi) networks district-wide
· New-
switches, cabling, phone upgrades, backup
· New-
back up power- generator
C. HVAC
at VHS
$3,852,580
·
Total overhaul of the original VHS heating and ventilation system
· New-
boilers, controls, vents, piping
D. Security $890,514
· New
vestibules/ visitor control at 5 schools (Laning completed in 2006)
·
Cameras (50 new cameras expandable) with recording capability district-wide
· Proximity
access system (swipe cards) at all schools
· New
door locking mechanisms district-wide
·
Glass reinforcement district-wide
E. Environmental Remediation of VHS Property
$1,888,250
·
Clean up environmental problems on the VHS property
·
Construct a retaining wall and create environmental cap
· Add
a 5th tennis court and expand parking lot- acts as cap
·
Refurbish existing tennis courts that are in disrepair
·
Create a usable space on upper field for practice and physical education 60% of
land
· Create
a green space that will be landscaped and fenced off 40% of land
F. VHS/Verona Community Multi-purpose Field
$3,806,994
·
Create a turf surface on lower field with 2 full soccer, LAX and football
fields
· Full
sized softball and baseball fields
·
Lights, bleachers, fencing, repair existing concrete bleachers that are in
disrepair
Totals:
·
Total project
cost
$16,641,855
·
NJDOE ROD Grant
$ 2,796,855
· Total
to Verona Taxpayers
$13,845,000
·
Total per year on the average house for 20 year
$176.75/year that is 48 cents/day
·
Other
o Debt Service aid- the
State has informed us that we are eligible for another type of aid called debt
service aid. Debt Service Aid will fund the payments on this portion of the
bond principal plus interest. The payment for this $2,402,789 will be
about $170,320/year, IF the state fully funds the aid each fiscal year.
o The total amount of
the project that is eligible for grants and aide is- $9,394,926
o The bonds will be for
20 years at a projected rate of 3.65%
o The ROD Grant and Debt
Service Aid are only received if passed by the voters.
Q- Why is the ballot question so confusing?
A- Since we are getting two types of aid the state requires the
lengthy explanation.
Q- What is a ROD Grant?
A- Stands for Regular Operating District- basically suburban
districts that do not typically receive as much aid from federal and state
sources
Q- What happens to the
grant money if the referendum fails?
A- The district only receives the money if we complete the
project. We have until June of 2015 to pass a referendum.
Q- What is debt
service aid?
A- Aid the state provides on a yearly basis on projects that
qualify. Our project has $2.4 M of debt service aid qualified projects.
Potentially 40% aid but can vary
Q- What projects
qualify for a ROD Grant or Debt Service Aid?
A- General B & G (except the music addition), technology,
HVAC, Security
Q- Why aren't the
music room addition, environmental remediation or field eligible for a ROD
Grant or Debt Service Aid?
A- The state will not give grants/aid for new construction unless
a building's overall capacity is a problem and they will not give grants/aid
for fields or exterior remediation.
