PROPERTY TAX VOTE

On Tuesday, Hamilton residents will be asked to vote themselves a $53-a-year property tax increase.

And if they’re smart, they’ll do so.

The school district has a $55.4 million referendum vote, and it’s going to be held from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. Check out the Hamilton Township webpage for polling places. Now.

If someone told me my property taxes were going up 53 cents, nevermind $53, my initial inclination would be to vote “no.” As in, “No!” As in, “NO. NO. NO. NO. NO. NO!”

But as I wrote a few years ago, Hamilton taxpayers need to bite the bullet (and eat the cliche) and spend money on their schools for necessary repairs. If residents don’t, they risk seeing their township — and more importantly their property values — spiral down.

Facts are facts, and in New Jersey, property values are directly tied to how good a school district is perceived to be. And if residents continue to let the schools fall apart, new families won’t be moving in, and property values will go down.

And it’s not like the money is going to be ill-spent; we’re talking busted pipes, collapsing roofs, masonry work. Security. Shatterproof windows.

Furthermore, the $55.4 million includes the state kicking in 40 percent of the number; if the referendum doesn’t pass, the money doesn’t come in.

You ask me, it’s a no-brainer. Residents of Hamilton — and any town where the schools are showing their age — need to invest money to keep them in top shape. Don’t do it, and risk losing population.

Of course, my simple math isn’t stopping some people from fighting hard against the referendum, with flyers showing up all over town telling people to not vote for the tax increase.

Then there’s people like Lisa Linkowsky who fight back.

Linkowsky is the founder of the Facebook page SOS Hamilton NJ. She, along with a few other administrators, fight hard to keep the page free of the typical social media vitriol.

“It’s a page for the community to come together,” she said. “It’s non-partisan, I’m not a teacher, it’s not a union-run page, not run by the board. We just talk about what is happening.”

She started the page a few years ago when the playgrounds at all the schools were closed for safety reasons. Not exactly something you want printed on the brochures.

And as for this referendum? For Linkowsky, it’s a no-brainer.

“The state is kicking in 40 percent of the $54 million. If we don’t pass it, we get nothing,” she said.

Furthermore, if it doesn’t pass, the two percent cap will kick in and residents will have no say how that money is spent. If the referendum passes, the $54 million has to be spent on what is outlined in the referendum.

“All the schools are structurally safe and sound, but neglected,” Linkowsky said.

As for the people posting letters all over town?

“The cost of the letters are probably more than the $54 they’d spend on the tax,” she said. “Besides, what’s their solution? What’s the alternative?” Answer: There is none. When I wrote about this a few years back, I noted the population of Hamilton has grown by only about 9,000 people in the last 50 years, after doubling from 1950 to 1970. The township is built out, more or less. The first generation of “new” Hamilton residents are moving on (one way or another) and the second and third generations are moving in. Big problem though: They’re dealing with first generation problems.

The schools are old, and they need to be taken care of. By not doing so, Hamilton residents — and other towns where the schools are showing their age — are signing their own death warrant, and I don’t think I’m speaking in hyperbole here.