Board
acts on third high school
Hires public relations, architectural firms
to prepare for referendum.
Sunday, December 19, 2004 • By MICHAEL P. BUFFER •
The Express-Times
Plans for a third high school in the North
Hunterdon-Voorhees Regional High School District are moving
ahead.
The school board on Tuesday hired a public relations
firm to provide advice on informing the public about the
rationale for a third school. School officials plan to ask
voters to approve a new high school in a December 2005
referendum.
Also Tuesday, the board hired Somerville architectural
firm USA Architects for the pre-referendum phase of the
project. USA Architects did preliminary work on a third high
school and estimated it would cost about $60 million.
The school board plans to vote at its Feb. 15 meeting to
go ahead with a bond referendum to build another high
school. The board is also looking for volunteers to serve on
a community information committee, which also would help
inform the public of the reasons for a third high
school.
School officials say a third high school is necessary
because of increasing student enrollment. The overall
enrollment of high school students in the district is 3,084
this year, and it is projected to increase to 3,466 in 2008,
and to 4,018 in 2013. Those projections don't include
population increases from housing developments that have not
received municipal approval.
A third high school would probably be for the district's
western municipalities -- Hampton, Glen Gardner, Bethlehem
Township, Union Township and Franklin Township. It would be
a 200,000-square-foot facility for 1,000 to 1,500
students.
Voorhees High School in Lebanon Township currently has
about 1,300 students enrolled and is at its functional
capacity, as defined by the state. North Hunterdon High
School in Clinton Township currently has an enrollment of
about 1,700 students, which is about 150 more than its
capacity.
School board President John Kulick said passing a bond
referendum next year has some urgency because about $15
million in state aid is available. He said "there is no
guarantee the state money will still be available" if the
referendum is defeated and the process to expand facilities
begins again.
If a referendum is approved in December 2005, the third
high school would be ready for the 2008-09 school year,
Kulick said.
USA Architects examined expanding the district's two
high schools as an alternative to building a third high
school. But school officials rejected that route because it
still would have cost more than $50 million and would have
resulted in the loss of athletic fields, Superintendent
Charles M. Shaddow said.
"We are pretty much committed on a third high school,"
Shaddow said.
He added that building additions to the two high schools
was a Band-Aid approach. He said a third high school was a
long-term solution to the district's growing
population.
The board on Tuesday approved a $95,000 contract with
USA Architects. The firm is required to update the
district's long-range facilities plan as part of the
third-high-school project.
Boyar & Sandler School Communications of Flagtown,
N.J., is the public relations firm hired by the school
board. The firm will be paid $135 an hour, and the school
district is prepared to spend $20,000 for the first of two
phases in the referendum effort, Shaddow said.
"Phase I is getting to the point of definitely going out
for a referendum," Shaddow said. "Phase II is after making a
decision to actively purse a referendum. A lot of things
have to take place."
Shaddow said the district has to acquire land for a
third high school and finish its five-year facilities plan.
Anyone interested in serving on the community information
committee can call 908-735-2846 or e-mail Shaddow at
cmshaddow@nhvweb.net by Jan. 5.
Reporter Michael P. Buffer can be reached at 610-258-7171
or by e-mail at mbuffer@express-times.com.
© 2004 The Express-Times. Used with
permission.
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