This Week at NJ21st: Big Votes, Big Agendas, and “Affordable” Housing on the March

This was a busy week at the 21st and as usual, we’re going to start at the top…

One of our Educator contributors broke down what several school districts throughout the 21st and on our Dashboard are expecting to receive in state aid in the proposed budget and how that compares to last year.  John covered the legislative calendar with a focus on Housing Bills in Committee.

Regionally, the theme continues to be affordable housing as our coverage of the most recent New Providence Town Council Agenda and Berkeley Heights Town Council Meeting shows both communities facing big changes with long-lasting impacts.  Berkeley Heights is on the radar again this week as it finalizes its approach with a whole slew of other impactful items carrying big price tags in a 170 page agenda. 

The biggest story on the local was the Berkeley Heights referendum, which passed convincingly, and we covered the historical context to the vote and how it lined up with other Districts.  Leading up to the vote, we had a contribution from an Educator that supported the referendum, while another contribution from a District employee brought several questions about the STEM narrative to light.  Laura broke down what each school was getting and provided a cost per pupil analysis, which raised equity questions along with a walk through on how the strategy of ‘Only Voting for Question 2″ could still advance the referendum. John wrapped it up with an overview of our coverage since the Referendum’s inception. 

Soon after the vote, the public received the BOE agenda that saw a near- $1M drop in the BHPSNJ BOE General Account.

On the Socials….

Terms Residents Can know for this Monday’s Berkeley Heights Town Council Meeting

NJ21st Joins Montclair State University News Commons

Machine Controlled Forums Continue to Muzzle and Ban

Invitation to Student Voices not Highlighted in District Marketing Materials on Referendum

Top Three Articles for February…

Nokia Redevelopment Investigation, $16.7M Emergency Spending, and Key Questions

nj21st 2025 Property Tax Dashboards

Court Orders Berkeley Heights to Release Unredacted Emails, Finds OPRA Denial Unreasonable

Andrea Is Searching for a Living Kidney Donor Andrea is a young EMT facing a high-stakes search for a living donor. NJ21st spoke with Andrea and her family about her story, what living with kidney disease looks like and how the community can help her story reach the right person. Visit Andrea's Page NJ21st is sharing Andrea's story as a community service feature. Donor screening information, the full interview, financial support links and contact information are available on Andrea's page.