Board to seek OK for 3 new schools Howell voters likely to face referendum on $50M package

Board to seek OK
for 3 new schools
Howell voters likely
to face referendum
on $50M package

The Howell Board of Education will pursue a committee’s recommendation to build three new schools in the community.

Board members said last week that they will target Dec. 11 as the date for a public referendum on a construction plan that may cost up to $50 million.

A portion of the cost may be paid for by the state, under an education finance bill that was signed into law last year.

Members of a referendum committee who have been meeting since August presented their recommendations to the board on Oct. 16.

The next evening, representatives of the school district ap-peared before the Planning Board to outline plans for the construction of an elementary school and a middle school in north Howell and an elementary school in south Howell.

Since August, five subcommittees of the referendum committee have been meeting with Scott Prisco, an architect from the firm Prisco and Edwards, Lawrence-ville.

Last week the subcommittee chairmen gave their reports to the board. All five subcommittees — architectural, educational-curriculum, public relations, finance, and technical — were in agreement that the best plan for the Howell district would be to build two elementary schools — a 69,850-square-foot, 550-pupil school in Ramtown; a 69,850-square-foot, 550-pupil school in north Howell; and a 110,950-square-foot, 750-pupil middle school in north Howell.

This recommendation differed from a plan that was initially discussed over the summer. At that time school officials believed they might ask voters to approve the construction of a 500-pupil elementary school in Ramtown, a 750-pupil middle school in north Howell and an eight-classroom addition to the Griebling School.

Wilma Cubero, principal of the Ramtown School and chairwoman of the education-curriculum subcommittee, began last week’s meeting by informing audience members the goals for the new plan.

Class size is extremely important to the new plan, she said. Cubero said state guidelines call for 21 children per classroom at the elementary level and 23 children in the fourth to eighth grade level.

Maintaining equity among the district’s schools in regard to programs, services and personnel as well as equity in delivery of those services to the students is a priority, she said. Eliminating trailers (portable classrooms) is another concern. Currently, there are five trailers in use.

"These trailers are only a temporary solution to our problem of growth," Cubero said. "Besides, there is a three-year limit on the use of trailers."

After the three-year period expires, state education officials will come in and force district administrators to remove the trailers and build what they have to build, according to board members.

Trailers, according to Cubero, also make the job of school security much more difficult. She also said there are no bathrooms and no water in the trailers, thereby making things more difficult, especially for classes such as art.

Cubero said the plan as presented might also address a request by some residents for the district to offer a paid prekindergarten program.

Richard Marvuli, chairman of the finance subcommittee, explained that after looking at all the negative side of things the referendum committee decided to focus on how to go about doing the right thing.

"We looked at what we’ve been doing with the trailers. We’ve essentially wasted $7 million. This time we’ve decided to do the right thing," Marvuli remarked.

He said committee members needed to fine tune the original proposal (two schools and the Griebling addition) after they asked themselves, "Is this enough?"

Marvuli said committee members decided to revamp the original plan in order to give the district what it needs over a longer period of time.

He presented the plan for two elementary schools and one new middle school and then compared the two plans. According to Marvuli, who called the referendum committee’s final recommendation for the construction of three schools a "bolder" plan, this option is estimated to cost $49.3 million, compared with the plan for two schools and the Griebling addition which was estimated at $37.5 million.

He reminded board members and the audience that the district would be eligible for what he said would be 46 percent reimbursement from the state’s $8.6 billion Educational Facilities and Construction Law, if the district builds the schools in conformance with certain state guidelines.

Renee Altshul, chairwoman of the public relations subcommittee, said members were hard at work trying to get the information out to residents. She expressed a special concern for the senior population and the impact the referendum, if approved, will have on their finances. She said the subcommittee was investigating ways to ease that impact. Altshul said initial indications are that the referendum will cost a family about an additional $156 per year in school taxes.

More specific information about the referendum’s impact on property taxes as it relates to the assessed valuation of a homeowner’s property was not provided.

"It’s an investment in our children who will someday do our Social Security," Altshul said. "We are investing in the future of our citizens."

Barbara Dixel, the liaison from the Township Council to the school board, said she is extremely worried about the impact of the referendum on Howell’s taxpayers and especially on the senior citizens.

Although Dixel, a resident and representative of The Villages adult community, would not commit to total support of the plan to build three schools rather than two, she told board members that she recognizes the need to build right now.

"These kids have to learn and so do we," Dixel said.

Board President Ronald Sanasac commended Dixel for her regular attendance at the meetings and for her valuable input, stating that the referendum committee "needed her voice."

"Our numbers would actually justify four elementary buildings," Sanasac said. "We have no desire to build just for the heck of it. It’s a different world out there and a different kind of education is necessary now."

He explained that the district was already at 92 percent capacity. Moves such as redistricting and split sessions were briefly discussed, but members of the subcommittees all agreed that these methods would only provide a temporary measure of correcting the problem.

"We need to stop putting a band-aid on this every two years," Altshul said. "We’re just throwing money away. If I have to come back here in another two years, I’m going to be very angry."

Board member Mark Bonjavanni told his fellow board members that he had heard the "most eloquent and impassioned pleas to stop doing this to us (residents) every other year. We made a decision to accept only one school (Howell Middle School South) two years ago. It cost us a lot of money.

Board member Robert Antonaccio referred to a technology referendum voters recently passed and said using the trailers does not allow the teaching staff to use the technology equally among schools.

Mayor Timothy J. Konopka attended the meeting and commended the members of the referendum subcommittees for the job they had done. Konopka expressed his concern that the proposal of three schools on the upcoming referendum may not fare as well with the voters. He said he felt the district had a better chance of getting a referendum passed with the original $37 million proposal of two new schools and an addition to the Griebling School.

"My concern is that the three schools will be too much for the voters to digest. The earlier proposal will be easier to sell. If this one is knocked down you’re in deep trouble. What then?" the mayor asked.

Sanasac said the board would go back to converting trailers to classrooms.

"We are a victim of our own successes," Sanasac said, "but we’re at the breaking point now. We are hoping that the community supports our recommendation."

Konopka reminded the board that he was doing his best to limit residential development in Howell by supporting the council’s rezoning of land. He said he felt that there would be a stabilization of development in the future.

Board member Louis Corato voiced his support for the construction of three schools.

"This is a classic case of we can pay now or we can pay later," Corato said. "Unless we can figure out how to stop kids from coming here we act now. We’ll get a 43 percent reimbursement. If we build in three years we will be paying 100 percent of the bill. We have no choice but to build now."

Sanasac told the audience that members of the referendum committee were passionate and enthusiastic about their job.

"It’s really a heartwarming thing to see members of he school community help us to determine what we want and need in this district," the board president said.

In a subsequent conversation with Superintendent of Schools Dr. Enid Golden, the superintendent said the board made a decision to move forward and pursue the referendum committee’s recommendation to build three schools. Golden mentioned that this will require an amendment to the Long Range Facilities Plan.

"Educationally, this is the best plan," she said.