Residents tell board to watch municipal development negotiations over enrollment, tax impacts
Summary
During public comment, residents urged people in the four sending towns to follow their local council negotiations with developers, saying density and affordable-housing set-asides (commonly 10–20%) affect school enrollment and tax revenue; transcript shows no board response or formal action recorded.
Residents at the Dec. 15 Pascack Valley Regional High School District meeting urged community attention to municipal development negotiations, saying town-level decisions about density and affordable-housing set-asides can affect school enrollment and tax revenue.
A public commenter said demographic studies show current enrollment is down compared with 7–12 years ago but that future development could increase student numbers. "I would encourage any resident in the four towns to focus on the town council and their town council meetings and the negotiations that are happening between their council and the developers because we have no say in that," the commenter said.
The commenter also noted that some developments meet affordable-housing requirements by dedicating roughly "10, 15, 20%" of units as affordable while building large numbers of units overall, which can change the district’s housing mix and future enrollment. The transcript records no board response or formal action on those comments.
Board members and administrators noted they are monitoring demographic information and legislative activity that could affect school funding and enrollment; the board reminded residents that municipal councils negotiate development terms.
