Voters reject school expansion North Warren plan included new classrooms Thursday, September 27, 2007 • BY MIKE FRASSINELLI • Star-Ledger Staff When North Warren school board member Paul Chipko went to cast his vote in favor of an $18.8 million school expansion on Tues day, the previous voter had left the machine set on "no" for both referendum questions. Chipko hoped that wasn't an omen. But as the night went on, voters in the regional school district said no by a nearly 3-to-1 ratio to the two-part proposal that would have added and renovated classrooms and upgraded athletic facilities. Proponents said the expansion was needed to ease a growing enrollment in the district covering grades seven to 12, where class sizes of more than 30 students are not unusual and some nomadic teachers have to carry around their belongings because they have no desk. Proponents said they wanted to avoid the alternative of classroom trailers at $250,000 apiece. Opponents pointed to what they considered excessive per- square-foot costs and questioned whether the district would continue to grow. The first question -- whether to spend $15.5 million to add classrooms and storage space and replace the boiler -- received 1,326 no votes (74 percent) and 468 yes votes (26 percent). The second question -- whether to spend $3.3 million to add two art rooms, a music room and weight room -- became moot after the first question was defeated, but it had similar results, with 76 percent of voters rejecting it. "I am interested in having stu dents housed and able to access programs, and it is hard when you have over 30 in a class," said a disappointed Interim Superintendent Catherine Mozak, who waited for the results along with Chipko on Tuesday night at the Warren County Courthouse in Belvidere. "So we just have to go back, re think everything and try harder to reach everyone." The school district includes Blairstown, Frelinghuysen, Hardwick and Knowlton townships. Pete McKenna, a local carpenter and tax watchdog who runs a newsletter called "Pete's Counterpoints," had urged a "no" vote. But even he was stunned by the margin of defeat. "It's just that the people are fed up with this grandiose plan they had to build a high school," McKenna said. "They needed something, but they didn't need this. This is ridiculous." Voters in Blairstown Township, where some residents moved to, in part, to live in a town without a municipal tax, can be a frugal lot, even voting at one point to disband the local police force to save $1 million. But Tuesday's referendum was defeated soundly in the three other townships in the school district, too, garnering no better than 36 percent support in any ward and receiving just 19 percent of yes votes in one ward in Knowlton. In a less controversial referendum vote elsewhere in the county, voters in the Mansfield Township School District approved the refinancing of a bond to save $250,000 that will be used to replace drafty and leaky old windows at the elementary school without a tax increase. There were 206 yes votes (90 percent) and 22 no votes (10 percent). Mike Frassinelli may be reached at mfrassinelli@starledger.com or (908) 475-1218. © 2007 The Star-Ledger. Used by NJ.com with permission.