Zimmer Reaches Out To Christie About Connors Funding

After touring the Connors Elementary School building yesterday, Mayor Dawn Zimmer sent a letter to the Gov. Chris Christie's office urging that this project cannot be postponed for three more years. 

The Schools Development Authority notified the district in a letter earlier this week that the long awaited funding for the renovation of the Connors School was put on hold, until further review of the plans. 

"After seeing the damage first hand," Zimmer wrote to the governor, "I can assure you that this is not a cosmetic waste of money, but a critical project that needs to be funded for the well-being of the students."

The foundation of the school is sinking and when it rains, classrooms are effected by flooding, Zimmer said. 

The design phase of this project is complete, Zimmer said. The NJSDA's letter stated that the design phase of the project had not been completed yet. 

"There may be some miscommunication there," said Zimmer in a phone interview. "They're planning on going into the construction phase."

Arrangements have been made to move the students out of the Connors School building by the beginning of next school year. There are only three more weeks left in the current school year, and parents need to know where their kids will be going, Zimmer said. 

Zimmer said she'd like to see the funding "as soon as possible," but did not give a more detailed timeline, or a deadline. 

In the letter to the governor, she also explained that the school's roof leaked shortly after installation. The person in charge of that project, which was done by the School Development Authority in 2001. Because the contractor of the project went to jail—not for this issue—the warranty of the project was not put into effect, the mayor wrote.

"Plaster falls from the ceiling, and the school has to constantly check for weak areas and remove the plaster to prevent it from hitting the children," Zimmer wrote also.

The school serves some of Hoboken's neediest children, many of whom live in the Housing Authority, Zimmer said. 

This is not the first time funding for the project has not come through. According to the mayor's letter, it happened at happened twice before. "Three times, the school has gone through a thorough review, and three times it has been declared as an essential project that must be funded by the state."

Earlier this week, Assemblyman Ruben Ramos Jr. also sent a letter Christie's office, writing that the Connors school is in dire need of repair.

"Upgrades are essential to Connors Elementary School and the Hoboken School District has been anticipating such improvements," Ramos wrote. "It is the contention of the school district that such improvements are vital to the learning experience of students at Connors Elementary School."

The mayor ends her letter by urging to meet with the governor—who visited Hoboken about a week and a half ago—as quickly as possible. 

"Contingency plans for this construction and the relocation required to perform repairs have disrupted all of the public schools, including three charter schools in Hoboken," Zimmer wrote.