Meeting Instructional & Budget Needs
Bond Referendum on March 11, 2025
Looking Toward the Future
West Deptford School District has a proud history of providing quality education and fostering a supportive, enriching environment for all our students. Our aging infrastructure needs significant improvements to continue meeting these high standards.
The Board of Education worked diligently to develop a bond proposal to meet WD's needs for modern instruction and budget efficiencies. On Tuesday, March 11, the public will vote on a $90 million proposal that would improve every single school. With voter approval, WD would gain $23.8 million in state aid – funding the district does not get if the same projects were completed through the regular operating budget.
A bond referendum is a vote that asks permission to borrow money through the sale of bonds. Property taxes would buy back the bonds over time. A public vote like this is the way a school district borrows money, like a homeowner might borrow money to build an addition or renovate a kitchen.
UPGRADES UNDER CONSIDERATION:
Add space for our growing Preschool program
Upgrade heating/cooling systems in all schools
Add rooms to the High School music wing
Improve our High School auditorium
Update science labs in the Middle School
Improve PE and athletic areas
Replace out-of-date alert and communications systems
Address aging infrastructure of roofs and building exteriors
Add an elevator at Green-Fields for ADA compliance
Bonds would bring $23.8 M in State Aid
We diligently maintain our buildings, but all WD schools need updates. At 60+ years old, many rely on infrastructure that no longer operates efficiently.
Using funds from the annual budget for these big-ticket repairs and upgrades reduces the resources available for instruction.
Bond funding allows districts to address needs that the annual operating budget cannot support.
And those aren't the only reasons ...
Voter approval of bond funding would unlock $23.8 million in state aid toward project costs that are eligible for a special state program. That means local taxes would not pay the entire cost.
Voter approval would bring money everyone already pays to the state back to our community. It is only available through a referendum.
WD has suffered through significant state funding cuts. Those forced a shift from proactive to more costly reactive maintenance.
Completing projects with the help of state aid would allow the district to move away from a repair-as-we-go approach to a more sustainable and fiscally responsible, proactive strategy.
Join the Virtual Community Forum
Tuesday, February 25 at 6:30 p.m.
Community members will hear from district leaders and financial and architectural advisors who led the planning for the bond referendum. Participants will learn about that plan through a presentation and can ask questions through Zoom’s Q&A feature.
In addition, Community Forum participants will learn about how the projects will be funded, the $23.8 million in state aid that would reduce the local tax share, and how to vote in the March 11 referendum.
Use this link to join this webinar-styled Community Forum.
IF VOTERS APPROVE
With voter approval on March 11, WD would work with professional consultants to arrange financing, advance toward more detailed plans, and begin the competitive bidding process that is designed to secure the lowest cost for the proposed improvements.
Work would begin in the summer of 2026 with planned completion of all projects by fall 2028.