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I think all these little towns should be consolidated into larger entities. All these little police depts, school districts, municipal fiefdoms are killing this state. Large cities and/or municipalities should be self-governing, but outside that, everything else should be county-based.
I think all these little towns should be consolidated into larger entities. All these little police depts, school districts, municipal fiefdoms are killing this state. Large cities and/or municipalities should be self-governing, but outside that, everything else should be county-based.
Sounds like an awesome idea, unless you reside in one of those "fiefdoms," chose it because of the school system and run the risk of having your property value plummet because that school has to be disbanded.
I think having shared police and fire, courts, garbage removal, snow removal, etc make sense because it has little bearing on property value, but to ask people to just toss aside the allure of a small, good school system for the greater good not to mention the property value benefits that comes with it- that is going to be a tough sell.
Last edited by tallguylehigh; 02-12-2009 at 01:43 PM..
Reason: Added "courts" to shared services
Sounds like an awesome idea, unless you reside in one of those "fiefdoms," chose it because of the school system and run the risk of having your property value plummet because that school has to be disbanded.
I think having shared police and fire, etc make sense because it has little bearing on property value, but to ask people to just toss aside the allure of a small, good school system for the greater good- that is going to be a tough sell.
That sounds like a very reasonable compromise, tallguy.
I suppose there is some attachment to the historic towns, even if they are small. I do think that it should require the voting approval of both towns. After all, presumably these little towns that "need" to be merged are the ones paying the higher taxes, so if it really is a bad deal for the citizens then you would think they would support the merger.
Sounds like an awesome idea, unless you reside in one of those "fiefdoms," chose it because of the school system and run the risk of having your property value plummet because that school has to be disbanded.
I think having shared police and fire, courts, garbage removal, snow removal, etc make sense because it has little bearing on property value, but to ask people to just toss aside the allure of a small, good school system for the greater good not to mention the property value benefits that comes with it- that is going to be a tough sell.
Don't disband the school systems that function the best; consolidate them with others nearby, combine staffs to save money and adopt best practices to bring all of the systems up to the level of the best system.
Don't disband the school systems that function the best; consolidate them with others nearby, combine staffs to save money and adopt best practices to bring all of the systems up to the level of the best system.
That might work.
I dunno though, I look at a relationship like that a lot like gravity- I see the chances of the smaller, good school sliding down towards the larger "lesser" (for analogy sake) school a lot more likely than the small, good school lifting up the large, "lesser" school.
Of course that analogy applies only when the smaller school is the better of the two.
please this will never happen, until A governor stands up to the unions, this is a smoke and mirror idea. Especially in Bergen County. I mean they have proposed this over and over and over for some towns in Bergen and of course it never happens. We need a Governor to break these Unions and its not gonna happen.
The irony in this is that Gusciora's hometown of Princeton Borough, while not a "doughnut" town, has tried to merge (unsuccessfully) with Princeton Township three times in the last fifty years. I predict this legislation will go nowhere. It's simply going to have to get much worse before it gets better. I believe that it eventually will get better, but it won't be before the state suffers a massive fiscal collapse, a hemorrhage of residents, etc... Only then from the smoking ruins could we hope to have another constitutional convention and start over again.
Don't disband the school systems that function the best; consolidate them with others nearby, combine staffs to save money and adopt best practices to bring all of the systems up to the level of the best system.
Or create a state-based school system, and let parents send their kids to whatever school they want.
But that will never fly; too many people have money tied into the existing unfair school system structure, and they will never want to see education spread out equally across the state, despite their so-called progressive facade.
please this will never happen, until A governor stands up to the unions, this is a smoke and mirror idea. Especially in Bergen County. I mean they have proposed this over and over and over for some towns in Bergen and of course it never happens. We need a Governor to break these Unions and its not gonna happen.
"Break" the unions? So in other words all we need is a good Republican like Christie right?
WRONG!
The corrupt legislature will continue to make backroom deals and thwart every single one of Christie's efforts. Basic civics teaches us that Governors don't make laws. That kind of basic knowledge seems to be completely lost on the perpetually complaining but unfailingly apathetic New Jersey populace. Instead of whining and crying about the evil politicians victimizing them, the citizens of our wonderful state ought to start hurling their insults at the mirror.
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