School Overload ?

[Guest Guest]

8 out of 10 families childless--no way that makes sense- what are they going to do? Have to sign a document that you will have not children/ then when woman gets pregant, have to move out. don't think so! There will be children and there will be overload.

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They can always put restrictions in place similar to residencies requiring owners to be 55 years of age, or older, and without children.

[Guest Realtor]

They can always put restrictions in place similar to residencies requiring owners to be 55 years of age, or older, and without children.

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Your ignorance is showing. You're referring to a closed community designed and built exclusively for seniors. Harrison cannot suddenly tell the developers they can only sell to seniors, that's rediculous. And of course, the mayor and council know this.

[Guest Guest]

Your ignorance is showing.  You're referring to a closed community designed and built exclusively for seniors. Harrison cannot suddenly tell the developers they can only sell to seniors, that's rediculous. And of course, the mayor and council know this.

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They do it else where, and seeing how lately everthing in this country is getting flipped upside down perhaps they could start it here as well.

[Guest guest]

They do it else where, and seeing how lately everthing in this country is getting flipped upside down perhaps they could start it here as well.

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YES..... WE DON'T HAVE ANY GATED COMMUNITIES, OR OVER 55 SENIOR DEVELOPMENTS OR ASSISTED LIVING IN THE WEST HUDSON OR SOUTH BERGEN CO AREAS ALONG THE PASSAIC RIVER TOWNS OF N ARLINGTON, LYNDHURST, RUTHERFORD, ETC. THEY WOULD FILL UP REASONABLY FAST, WITH SENIORS WHO DON'T WANT THE RESPONSIBILITY OF CARING FOR A PRIVATE HOME WITH YARDWORK, ETC, AND WHO DON'T WANT TO MOVE FAR AWAY FROM WHERE THEY SPENT MOST OF THEIR LIFE.

ALSO, IN HARRISON, SENIOR HOUSING WOULD MEET THE TOWN'S MT LAUREL OBLIGATIONS, SINCE WE ALREADY HAVE 4-5 TIMES MORE LOW-INCOME HOUSING IN HARRISON (gardens & kingsland court), THAN ALL OF THE OTHER WEST HUDSON, SOUTH BERGEN CO. TOWNS OF N ARLINGTON, LYNDHURST OR RUTHERFORD HAVE. An increased senior pop. would bring no added drain to the schools by way of students or added teachers to pay for; less added police to pay for and less traffic, and less small-time crime from an under 40 pop,

[Guest Guest]

The new housing structures that are currently being built in the redevelopment zone are not going to significantly increase the town's number of students. Harrison has a reputation of being residentially mobile; in simpler terms, people tend to live in Harrison on a temporary basis, moving in and out of the town all the time. A recent statistic under the NJ Department of Education (NJDOE) has stated that only about 20% of students that attended kindergarten in Harrison Public Schools remained in Harrison for the 4th grade. (Check out the state education website if you are doubtful of this percentage.)

As seen in similar situations of the New York City metropolitan area, the young, urban population this town is trying to attract will generally not be staying for longer than 6 years. There exists the overwhelming tendency of these families to move deeper into suburbia to raise their families in more strictly residential neighborhoods instead of mixed use commercial-residential zones. Mixed use areas usually draw in singles in their 20's or early 30's looking for roommates and such. Also, a number of parents who live in these transit villages send their kids to private schools in the city.

As a graduate of Harrison High School, I hope that you don't send your kids to school here. A 2002 publication of the NJDOE that ranked every public secondary school in the state of New Jersey places Harrison High at 271 out of 305, and from what I've heard from many employees of the high school, not much has changed. The school is drained of elective and advanced placement courses valued by competitive colleges because of the multiple remedial classes that need to be taught, especially for the majority of its student body that fails at least a section of the statewide HSPA test required for a high school diploma. An average of about 68% of HHS graduates continue to any form of higher education, when the state average is well over 90%. I graduated from a moderately prestigious college, which, to this day, still shocks me after attending Harrison High.

[Guest Realtor]

The new housing structures that are currently being built in the redevelopment zone are not going to significantly increase the town's number of students.  Harrison has a reputation of being residentially mobile; in simpler terms, people tend to live in Harrison on a temporary basis, moving in and out of the town all the time.  A recent statistic under the NJ Department of Education (NJDOE) has stated that only about 20% of students that attended kindergarten in Harrison Public Schools remained in Harrison for the 4th grade.  (Check out the state education website if you are doubtful of this percentage.)

As seen in similar situations of the New York City metropolitan area, the young, urban population this town is trying to attract will generally not be staying for longer than 6 years.  There exists the overwhelming tendency of these families to move deeper into suburbia to raise their families in more strictly residential neighborhoods instead of mixed use commercial-residential zones.  Mixed use areas usually draw in singles in their 20's or early 30's looking for roommates and such.  Also, a number of parents who live in these transit villages send their kids to private schools in the city. 

As a graduate of Harrison High School, I hope that you don't send your kids to school here.  A 2002 publication of the NJDOE that ranked every public secondary school in the state of New Jersey places Harrison High at 271 out of 305, and from what I've heard from many employees of the high school, not much has changed.  The school is drained of elective and advanced placement courses valued by competitive colleges because of the multiple remedial classes that need to be taught, especially for the majority of its student body that fails at least a section of the statewide HSPA test required for a high school diploma.  An average of about 68% of HHS graduates continue to any form of higher education, when the state average is well over 90%.  I graduated from a moderately prestigious college, which, to this day, still shocks me after attending Harrison High.

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No one can say with any certainty how many school-age children will come out of the redevelopment area. Housing statistics will give you a pretty good idea of what can be expected, and the statistics say that an average of at least one child per unit can be expected, with that number increasing to over two after a few years as families grow. Harrison officials should be thinking about what they're going to do about adding 7,000 new classroom spaces in a town with no spare classroom space and nowhere to provide more. And there's no more money coming from the state.

[Guest Guest_justme_*]

No one can say with any certainty how many school-age children will come out of the redevelopment area. Housing statistics will give you a pretty good idea of what can be expected, and the statistics say that an average of at least one child per unit can be expected, with that number increasing to over two after a few years as families grow.  Harrison officials should be thinking about what they're going to do about adding 7,000 new classroom spaces in a town with no spare classroom space and nowhere  to provide more. And there's no more money coming from the state.

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Buy Holy Cross School. Use it as a Boys & Girls Club. If new classrooms are needed in the future, move the B & G Club to the Rec Center and use the classrooms.

[Guest Guest]

Buy Holy Cross School. Use it as a Boys & Girls Club. If new classrooms are needed in the future, move the B & G Club to the Rec Center and use the classrooms.

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What a loical solution. It will probably escape the people running the school system, either that or Ronnie Cat will veto it (out of his control).

[Guest Realtor]

Buy Holy Cross School. Use it as a Boys & Girls Club. If new classrooms are needed in the future, move the B & G Club to the Rec Center and use the classrooms.

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We're looking at maybe 7,000 new school kids, Holy Cross can take 600 -800 tops. Where do we put the other 6,200 -6,400 kids.

[Guest Guest]

Maybe they should make the new housing a sort of retirement village. Then they wouldn't have to worry about more children. I'm sure there are plenty of people who would like to retire in scenic Harrison, New Jersey.

[Guest BlueTideBacker]

Maybe they should make the new housing a sort of retirement village. Then they wouldn't have to worry about more children. I'm sure there are plenty of people who would like to retire in scenic Harrison, New Jersey.

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That's a joke. Retirement villages have outdoor areas with grass and flowers and trees and benches to sit on. Last time I looked I didn't see anything like that.

[Guest Guest]

Or stay, and vote the rascals out.

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It happened in Hoboken