OPINION: Good News for Holmdel Tax Payers

Your tax rate will decline significantly over the next 10 years UNLESS our Township Committee messes with our Zoning; for example, by endorsing sewer line expansion to undeveloped areas which will stimulate the breaking of the present large lot requirements. This would not only stimulate school population growth but would deplete valuable drinking water resources, for which there is a growing shortage, by dumping water into the ocean.   

I am a 62-year Holmdel resident and a former Planning Board Member, Chairman in 69 & 70.  I am very concerned about the direction that our town is headed.  In '67, County Planning Board Director Charlie Pike provided a chart showing that the number of school-age children from homes in a new subdivision peaks at a house age of about 15 years.  By the time the homes are 25 years old, the average number per home of school-age children drops to fewer than ½ the peak. 

Holmdel’s school population has been declining because our new-home growth stalled in 2005 and should continue to decline by at least 20 percent over the next 10 years.   At the end of 2013, we had 5482 residential units and about 2000 were occupied in 1990 or later and are 24 or fewer years old.   Only about 600 were 15 years old or younger. Therefore, the school-age numbers for 1400 of these units, while providing more than the long-term average, are in decline.  The numbers from the remaining 600 will stabilize soon because 471 of these unit were occupied by the end of 2004.  The number of school age children from the older approximately 3500 units should remain essentially constant. 

Our school population has already dropped from 3587 on 10/15/03 to 3099 on 2/15/14 because of the aging of homes occupied prior to 1990 and a large number of the 1400 residential units having passed beyond the 15 year peak-number-of-school-age-children age.   The remaining undeveloped properties are zoned for 2.5 -  4 acre minimum lots and recently constructed new homes are assessed at 1 plus million dollars and are great ratables.  They pay their school costs from day one of occupancy and do not contribute significantly to municipal costs.

About 67+ % of our taxes go to cover school costs and, while the costs of building maintenance may not change much and the number of teachers may decline slower than the student population, our school costs will decline.   If our school costs are reduced 20 percent, our tax rate should drop about 14 percent.  This doesn’t take into account the impact of the high value of new residential units.

WE HAVE NO NEED TO SELL OPEN SPACE OR TO ATTRACT MORE NON-RESIDENTIAL RATABLES, WHICH ADVERSELY IMPACT THE RESALE VALUE OF NEIGHBORING RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES, TO REDUCE OUR TAX RATE.  WE NEED TO PROTECT WHAT WE HAVE!!

Larrabee M. Smith