School Referendum Passes Unofficially In Washington Township

LONG VALLEY, NJ — The Washington Township School District's referendum to make significant renovations to all district-wide schools was unofficially approved by the majority of Long Valley voters.

A vote on the referendum was held on Tuesday, March 14.

According to the preliminary results recorded by the Morris County’s Election Division, the referendum received the following numbers as of 10:18 p.m. on March 14:

• Question No. 1: Yes received 901 votes. No recorded 793

A total of 1,694 ballots were cast of the 15,621 registered voters, according to Morris County.

The referendum question sought $28.8 million in funding for district-wide renovation projects such as infrastructure upgrades, classroom renovations and instructional additions.

The state of New Jersey has agreed to fund 40 percent of the referendum.

If the referendum had failed, the state will not provide more than $11 million in state aid to the schools. Furthermore, whether or not the referendum passes, the items on the project list will need to be addressed at some point, according to the district.

There will be little to no impact on taxpayers, district officials said.

The total cost for the Referendum 2023 is $28.8 million.

The funds will be used to meet a growing need across all schools for significant capital improvements to address overall safety and climate in district schools, as well as to improve educational spaces to support greater integration of STEM learning opportunities across the curriculum.