The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1902-08-15
SCHOOL NO. II
SITE.
Bergen Improvers Delight
ed and Surprised at
the Finance Boards
Action.
REASONS FOR THE ROHAIHE PLOT
Mayor Pagan Finds That the
speer Land Would Make
Too Much Of an Il"
REASONS FOR THE ROMAIHE PLOT

Residents of the old Bergen section,
particularly those living in the neighbor-
hood Of Public School No. in Bergen
Square, caught their breaths last night
when they learned that the Board Of FL
nance had adopted resolution Wednes-
day afternoon, which Mayor Pagan
signed yesterday, authorizing the pur-
chase of the Romaine property on Acad-
emy street, adjoining the school build
ing, for school purposes.
They caught their breaths, not for the
reason that the officials had at last
made up their minds to secure additional
land so that a brand new school could
be built, but because the Board of Eli
nance should have decided to buy the
Romaipe property at sight at any old
figure which the owner might place up
on it without giving the owner OF the
Speer property on the other side of the
school chance to put in a bid.
The Romaine property faces on Acad-
emy street in the rear of the school. 1t
is about 70 feet wide and 100 feet long.
running north to Dick street. The Speer
plot, which was offered to the city, has
frontage of about 100 feet on Bergen
avenue north of the school, and runs back
$50 feet alongside the building.
BETWEEN TWO PLOTS.
The question of the desirability of ac-
quiring the respective plots has long been
in dispute The people of Bergen have
taken issue on it in discussing the mat
ter and so far as can be learned they
are about equally divided in their pre-
ferences.
This is the reason why they were so
surprised when they heard of the action
of the Board of Finance in deciding to
buy the Romaine plot at the owners
price without giving the representatives
of the Speer property chance to bid in
the usual formal and official way.
CITY'S DECISION.
Mayor Pagan claims that the city con-
cludes that the Speer plot wouldn't do
because it would form an Il" by its
conjunction with the present school site.
The same condition would exist by the
acquisition of the plot in the rear. The
Mayor says that the Romaine estate has
offered the property for sale for $40, coo,
which he considers fair price for such
a splendid piece of land in the Bergen
section where prices We're high. Those
who favored the purchase of the Speer
plot contend that it would be much bet
ter to build an L shaped school with a
wide frontage on the square and Bergen
avenue than to construct an l. shaped
structure with a small frontage on the
square, and the greaterpar of the build
ing being in side street.
The Bergen Improvement Association
is elated over the action of the Board
of Finance directing the purchase of ad-
ditional property for a new No. IL School
site The members Of the association
take credit to themselves.
Those who interested themselves
in the movement figured that the
old Speer homestead, on the eastern
themselves in the movement figured that
the old Speer homestead, on the eastern
corner of the square, would also be pur-
chased 1t does not seem likely at this
time that the Board of Finance will
spend $4,000, or $1,000, in addition to
what will be paid for the Romaine prop
erty. for it. There is room for the con-
struction of very large school building
without it. 1t is figured that the Ro-
maine property can be bought for about
$4,000.
The Board of Finance will also. be call
ed upon in a few days for an appropria-
tion for repairs to the much abused old