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WOODBINE - The Board of Education will ask voters to approve a smaller bond referendum next month to repair the school.

The board trimmed $2.3 million off the proposed $6 million bond referendum after the borough identified other ways to pay for renovations.

Borough Council will vote Dec. 3 on a memorandum of understanding between the local government and the board over the project. Council's endorsement is expected to help the district garner wider support among voters who go to the polls Dec. 8.

"Certainly, the mayor and council represent the voice of the borough. I absolutely feel their support is vital and important," Superintendent Lynda Anderson-Towns said.

The board plans to ask voters for permission to borrow $3.7 million for a new roof with solar panels, updated electrical wiring, flooring and kitchen equipment and a security entryway.

The district now plans to use grants to pay for classroom lights, doors, windows and a new boiler.

The repairs are badly needed in the school, she said.

"Most of our voters' children and many of them attended school here," she said. "They realize the age of the building. Just like houses, there is an amount of upkeep. I am very optimistic that the community will come out and support us and the children."

The project will no longer require Woodbine to extend its borrowing capacity to the school board to finance the project.

"I wanted to assure a safety net and not play with the stock market with this," Mayor William Pikolycky said.

The solar panels are expected to cut the district's utility bills by as much as $50,000 per year. Under the memorandum of understanding, any surplus revenue generated by the solar panels will be dedicated to paying off the bonds or cutting taxes. State aid will pay for at least 58 percent of the project.

Polls will be open from 2 to 8 p.m. Dec. 8 at the Ambulance Hall and the Woodbine Fire House.

Contact Michael Miller:

609-463-6712

MMiller@pressofac.com

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