The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1890-01-11
Ten Years License Re-
ceipts Pledged to It's
Payment.
MAYOR tHEVELANDS IDEA ACTED upon.
The Only Fear in the Case Is That
the High License Law May
Be Repealed.
VIEWS OF DEPARTMENT HEADS.

The determination of the Board of Edu-
cation to ask for legislation that will en-
able the expenditure of 100000 OF moneys
at once upon the erection of new public
schools in this city. is movement OF the
largest interest and Importance. The
proposition is to borrow the money in
anticipation of the year to year receipts
from the sale of liquor licenses. The
Board of Education have already had
bill looking in that direction drawn.
SUMMARY OF THE BILL.
The bill provides that the Board of
Finance have power to issue $1,000 bonds,
bearing not more than five per cent. in
terest and having not more than ten years
to run, said bonds to be sold at not less
than their par value and the sum derived
from their sale shall be kept apart as
separate fund to be disbursed exclusively
for building. repairing and furnishing
such structures as the Board OF Educa-
tion may decide are necessary for the ac-
commodation of the School Department,
provided that the whole amount of these
bonds shall not be eight times the amount
of the monies or funds SO required to be
annually set aside and that were so re-
ceived and set aside for the year 1889.
L
the passage of the act no more money
shall be paid out for school purposes, but
the amounts from year to year shall be
kept as a sinking fund.
Section provides that if the funds
thus set aside shall be insufficient to pay
the interest and principal of the bonds
the deficiency shall be made up by taxa
tion.
s'The new charter,'' Mayor Cleveland
said this morning. requires the setting
aside for The purpose OF building new
Sehael houses one-qnarter of all monies
received for licenses from the sale of
liquor. This amounted to upward of
$50 600 last year. That would enable US
to build one school building, but we are
greatly in need of several such buildings.
and it is absolutely necessary that two of
the present buildings shall be taken
down and rebuilt, Nos. and 2.
TWO DANGEROUS SCHOOL BUILDINGS.
"I do not desire to alarm anybody un-
necessarily, but 1T is well known that two
buildings now in use are in dangerous
condition, and yet we have no money
with which to rebuild them. Some of the
other buildings require extensive repairs,
and in some parts of the city we are rent
ing buildings for school purposes that are
totally unfit, while in other parts of the
city we have not accommodation for
more than one half of the school popula-
tion.
"In some schools the Superintendent
has tried his best to accommodate the
pupils with the poor facilities at his com
mand by taking class OF little ones in
during the forenoon, discharging them at
noon and taking in another class in the
afternoon. Comment is unnecessary upon
such q condition of things. The difficulty
has been to raise the money to build new
buildings. With the enormous debt upon
Jersey City and more tnan 81 100000 an
nually to pay out in interest we were I'M
able to burden the tax levy with amount
sufficient to build school houses.
''The one recently built in Lafayette
was under law procured for that pur-
pose, and was built on bonds. While
recognize the necessity for these new
buildings Pm unwilling to go on build
ing them by the issue OF bonds. the prin-
cipal and interest of which are TO burden
the tax levy hereafter.
THE PROPOSITION FAVORED.
'sThe system now proposed first made
known last summer when the city Boards
made an official visit to the Belleville
water works, and it met with universal
satisfaction. The amount to be reserved
from the license money annually under
the new charter for school buildings will
enable us to build one school house each
wear; but in the meantime the children
are growing up without proper school ia
cilities-
'.My proposition is to enable the city to
avail itself, at once, of the proceeds of
this license money, and build several
school buildings and rebuild and repair
those in use now We can do this by bor-
rowing in anticipation of the license
money, issuing short bonds and paving
these bond out of the license money when
collected later on. BY this system we
NAV be able to give the children of school
age an education without raising one
dollar by taxation.
II propose in this.bill that we shall bor-
row in advance eight years receipts
based upon the amount received last
year and isuse these ten year bonds
which will enable us to pay the bonds
and the interest thereon at maturity out
of the fund provided in the new charter.
1.-THE only change l propose by this sys-
tenn is that we avail ourselves at once OF
the benefit of the license money for eight
wears instead of waiting to use for school
purposes only one-eighth year during
the same time.
.sThe loss to the Schoo! Department
will be the amount of money we pay out
for interest on these bonds, while the gain
will be the ability to give the children
chance to go to school at once"
SUPPOSE HIGH LICENSE WERE REPEALED.
..Should the Legislature repeal the high
license law what would be the effect on
the boads?"
.iThcy would have to be paid by taxa
tion rs other bonds are paid, and that is
provided for in the bill. If the high
license law were repealed ut once Jersey
civ Syould be obliged 70 build school
buildings under general law of the
Stare that compells every city TO provide
school accommodation for all children of
school age.
1--WE have not done so, and If had not
puu in the new charter the provision
which will enable us to do something
towards it with the license money, we
should have had difficulty with the State
school authorities.
aIt is rather severe foF any city to be
situated As we are, so ourdened With the
payment of interest money tnag we can
not hrijd school houses enough to enable