>Department of Education (DOE) will owe Ridgewood as much as $9.8 million in grant money at the completion of the construction projects at our schools
Without state grant money, Ridgewood school district’s coffers are running low
WEDNESDAY, JULY 6, 2011
BY KELLY EBBELS
STAFF WRITER
THE RIDGEWOOD NEWS
Unless the state of New Jersey sends overdue grant money to Ridgewood post-haste, the school district will have to borrow millions of dollars to avert a cash flow crisis.
The state’s Department of Education (DOE) will owe Ridgewood as much as $9.8 million in grant money for construction projects at schools across the district by the time construction is complete; so far, the district has requested about half that amount. Although the district has continued to pay its contractors for the substantial repairs and renovations at eight of the district’s 10 schools, which have proceeded on or ahead of schedule, the state has so far delivered none of the money owed.
The issue has been on the radar screen of the Board of Education (BOE) for some months, but as the clock ticks, Ridgewood’s coffers continue to deplete – now forcing officials to plan to ask for about $5 million in loans, known as grant anticipation notes, by the end of the year so that the district can continue to operate while continuing its construction projects.
“We can’t exactly put out payroll checks and say, ‘Don’t cash it quite yet,'” said Bob Hutton, BOE vice president and chair of the finance committee.
