Voters to decide whether to approve $39.1 million bond to repair, upgrade Mantua Township, New Jersey schools
A month after New Jersey elected a new governor, voters in one Gloucester County town are heading to the polls again Tuesday to decide on the path forward for three aging school buildings.
Mantua Township, New Jersey, is holding a referendum on whether to raise $39 million to pay for upgrades across all three schools in the Mantua Township School District.
If voters approve Mantua Township schools taking out a $29.2 million bond, the state of New Jersey will kick in another $9 million, and another $1 million would come from the district's capital reserves.
The district says the bond dollars will pay for roof replacements, a new pre-school addition, rebuilding four kindergarten classrooms, heating and air conditioning repairs and safety and security upgrades — including doors that are compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
Mayor Robert Zimmerman and Superintendent Christine Trampe explained more about the referendum in a video posted on the township's YouTube page.
A township page explaining the bond says it would address "critical needs," including "roofs that are leaking and at the end of their useful life."
The bond, if approved, would cost the average homeowner in Mantua $28 a month for 20 years.
Polls are open until 8 p.m. at the Mantua Township Fire District No. 1 facility on Union Avenue.
The Mantua Township School District consists of three elementary schools, and students then attend Clearview Regional Middle School and Clearview Regional High School.