Ground broken at new $160M High Tech High School in Secaucus

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The groundbreaking ceremony for the new Hudson County Schools of Technology High School at Laurel Hill Park in Secaucus took place yesterday with students, guests and elected officials on hand.

High Tech groundbreaking

By Sibrena Stowe Geraldino/Hudson County View

Superintendent of Schools Frank Gargiulo, also a North Bergen Commissioner, spoke to Hudson County View about how the project was funded.

“Vocational schools are funded differently. We’re funded based on the amount of free and reduced lunch population believe it or not, it’s a formula and ours came out to be 60 percent, so 60 percent of that by law is funded by the state and the rest has to be funded by the county.”

The new school will house a state-of-the-art facility with courses in architecture and engineering, sciences, performing arts, broadcasting and culinary arts.

The school will serve approximately 120 teachers and 1,200 students, almost 30 percent more than the current vocational technical school enrollment at the current 85th Street location in North Bergen – which is a 100-year-old building..

According to Gargiulo, $20 million from the sale of the old school building will go towards the payment for the new facility.

Assembly Speaker Vincent Prieto (D-32), a longtime ally of Gargiulo and advocate of vocational schools, was instrumental in changing legislation and finding funding for the 350,000 square-foot campus.

“This has been long in the making. I went to college and couldn’t afford college and went into a trade so, I’ve been a big advocate of vocational technical education.”

The project was designed and built by DMR Architects, a 25-year-old firm who also designed the Meadowlands Sports Complex Station, the student center at Bergen County Community College – among many other facilities.

Company President and CEO Lloyd Rosenberg added:

“We commend the Hudson County Improvement Authority for its commitment to providing facilities designed to best prepare students for their future careers. It is an honor to be part of a project that will ultimately provide some of the best high school educational spaces not only in the state, but around the country.”

“We look forward to the chance to work with the Hudson County Improvement Authority, Hudson County Schools of Technology and a highly-skilled design and construction team to bring this project to successful completion.”

The project is expected to be completed by 2018.

Back in November 2014, the project was expected to cost $120 million and construction was set to complete by September 2019.

Other officials in attendance included North Bergen Mayor/state Senator Nick Sacco (D-32), Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop, Harrison Mayor James Fife, Guttenberg Mayor Gerald Drasheff, Freeholders E. Junior Maldonado (D-4), Anthony Romano (D-5), Caridad Rodriguez (D-7), Anthony Vainieri (D-8), Hudson County Sheriff Frank Schillari – among many more.


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6 COMMENTS

  1. While Hoboken residents pay a disproportionately high percentage of ever increasing Hudson County taxes few of it’s students will ever go to this school.

    The new multimillion dollar Freeholder club house, Golf Cource and the long list of extravagant spending has caused yearly double digit increases for Hoboken taxpayer with very little benefit.

    Does Hoboken Freeholder Anthony “Stick” Romano do anything other than showing up for photo ops ?

  2. A lot of Hudson County residents do not want to see North Bergen’s preschool permanently take away part of Braddock Park’s open space and recreation areas.
    The preschool has violated NJ State Green Acres regulations for 15 years with its 17 trailers parked on what used to be a (real grass) ball field in Braddock Park.
    For 15 years, children have been going to school in trailers and the time is now to get them into REAL classrooms, where they can go to school with their siblings.
    This is possible, now that the Hudson County Hi-Tech H.S. will be up for sale.
    If North Bergen bought this building and converted it into an intermediate school:
    1- It would free up classrooms in the elementary schools so preschoolers could go to elementary school with their siblings.
    2- Overcrowding in the North Bergen H.S. would be reduced.
    Or instead, the Hi-Tech building could be converted into the preschool.
    In either case, preschoolers will no longer be in trailers; instead they will be in real schools with the advantages of gyms, auditoriums, libraries, cafeterias, etc.
    Real schools offer better security and are safer.
    North Bergen should withdraw its Braddock Park Diversion application and do the right thing for Braddock Park lovers as well as for North Bergen’s students and teachers.

  3. No they should build the pre K, give them time nb will take that building over if possible. When they buy the building n your taxes go up are you going to cry?.peopld like you are never satisfied. Look and see the tax hike hoboken got than maybe you stop complaining.

  4. Poor cardiad.Rodriguez she looks so lost probably the only place she hasn’t received a paycheck from….her husband’s probably on the payroll

  5. Hello Everyone,
    Something is really blinking red and I can say that it’s not very good because it’s annoying to me everyday of the week.
    From,
    Zoo R. Man !
    PS. Nobody want’s
    to move from one town to another !

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