By Donald Gilpin

At its November 16 meeting, which took place after press time, the Princeton Public Schools (PPS) Board of Education (BOE) was expected to authorize a special election to take place on January 25, 2022, presenting Princeton voters with a $17.5M “Facilities Stewardship Referendum for Urgent Capital Needs.” The bond issue would include repair and replacement of leaking roofs at all six district schools, along with addressing other overdue maintenance needs.

“We think it is important to proactively maintain our infrastructure in a fiscally prudent manner,” PPS Business Administrator and Board Secretary Matthew Bouldin wrote in an email on Monday. “Periodic capital facility referendums are a great way to do that. We have old and failing roofs and some other important infrastructure which has outlasted its useful life. We are asking the voters to approve this referendum to do this work.”

He continued, “Once we have new roofs, we will be able to move forward with installing solar panels, which will be a win-win for the taxpayers and, just as importantly, for the Earth.”

In his November 9 presentation to the BOE, Bouldin noted, “Princeton Public Schools capital infrastructure such as roofs, siding, and masonry have been neglected for a long time.  This situation unnecessarily stresses the operating budget, preventing the district from creating a modern 21st-century learning environment.”

In addition to new solar-ready roofing for all the schools, the planned maintenance would repair deteriorating masonry at Princeton High School (PHS), gutters and fascia at Johnson Park, siding at Littlebrook and Riverside, and skylights at Johnson Park, and replace outdated rooftop HVAC at all schools.

The BOE plan calls for work to begin in the summer of 2022 with projects spread out over the next several years.

The Board received approvals from the New Jersey Department of Education and a preliminary eligible cost letter on October 13. With the anticipated November 16 BOE authorization, the next steps would be a letter by November 26 to county and town clerks and county Board of Elections requesting a special election on January 25, 2022 and the submission of a certified copy of the referendum proposal to county and town clerks and county Board of Elections by January 7, 2022.

It is the BOE’s goal to address these and future facilities needs without raising the debt service tax levy from fiscal year 2021-22 levels. The debt from prior referendums is scheduled to mature on February 1, 2022 and 2023, and the proposed projects can be completed without increasing debt service above the current levels.

Bouldin also pointed out that the state would reimburse the district for up to 34 percent of the principal and interest payments for the cost of these repairs. Further cost savings, as well as greater sustainability, would be achieved through the planned installation of rooftop solar panels after replacing the schools’ leaking roofs.

The cost of doing nothing, he added, would include the risk of mold and structural damage as leaks continue in all six schools. “If the bond proposal passes on January 25, 2022,” said Bouldin, “taxpayers will save money in emergency repairs, custodial overtime, and prevent the loss of classroom space due to leaking roofs and problems associated with outdated equipment.”

Other area school districts have been able to save energy and money with rooftop solar installations, according to Bouldin’s report. Hopewell Valley Regional School district, with rooftop solar on several buildings, as well as geothermal heating and cooling systems, has reduced energy usage by 30 percent; Franklin Township Public School district has saved more than $440,000 in two years with a solar array and rooftop solar on four buildings; and Plainfield Public Schools anticipate saving nearly $2.5M over the next 15 years with the installation of rooftop solar on seven buildings.

The BOE continues to engage in ongoing long-term planning with the $17.5M facilities stewardship referendum part of a larger review of facilities needs. “As the district determines additional facilities needs and requirements, there will be additional proposals to address growing enrollment at PHS and Princeton Middle School and pedagogical needs,” Bouldin said in his report.