Voters give schools
OK for construction

Man.-Eng. board will proceed with $48.8M package

BY DAVE BENJAMIN

Staff Writer

Voters in Manalapan and Englishtown have given their approval to a $48,826,316 school construction plan by a count of 2,356 to 1,172.

Administrators in the Manalapan-Englishtown Regional School District expect the project to commence in the summer of 2004.

Voters went to the polls on Sept. 30.

"It was an absolutely resounding success," said Joseph F. Passiment Jr., business administrator for the Board of Education.

The referendum was approved in both towns, although that is not required for the plan to pass (the overall vote is the determining factor). Passiment noted that Englishtown voters gave the plan a thumbs up, a historical first-time happening.

In Manalapan, 3,363 people voted out of 21,637 registered voters (15.54 percent). The plan was approved 2,269 in favor to 1,090 opposed.

In Englishtown, 169 people voted out of 952 registered voters (17.75 percent). The plan was approved 87 in favor to 82 opposed.

All votes are considered unofficial until certified.

"This was just an absolutely wonderful evening," Passiment said just after the polls closed at 9 p.m. and the votes were counted. "Everyone should be commended for their efforts. We absolutely thank the voters."

With public meetings, newspaper articles, road signs, literature in the mail, phone calls and displays throughout the schools, Passiment said there was a concerted effort on everyone’s part to make sure that residents fully understood the referendum.

"Obviously, people took it to heart," he said. "Obviously, people responded and we certainly do thank them."

Superintendent of Schools Maureen Lally had similar thoughts.

"I would certainly like to thank all of the community members who came out to vote and support the referendum," Lally said. "This is a victory for our chil­dren. The support and enthusiasm by voters for the project is greatly appreci­ated."

School board President James Mumolie said, "I’d like to thank the citi­zens of Manalapan and Englishtown for coming out and putting the needs of the children and the future of the children in this district first and foremost."

Mumolie noted that only 8 percent of registered voters came out to vote for the last school budget, but he said that ap­proximately 16 percent of all registered voters came out to vote on Sept. 30.

"It shows that the taxpayers of this district were concerned and listened to the messages sent out by the school dis­trict," he said. "They realize the chil­dren’s future is in their hands."

The Manalapan-Englishtown Education Association had previously announced its support for the plan. Association president Ken Weber said the district has been growing by leaps and bounds and said something had to be done to alleviate the overcrowding.

"The renovations and repairs are a wise investment for district taxpayers," Weber said. "They ensure that the grow­ing student population has a quality learning environment, which is a major contributor to academic success, and by keeping our public schools strong they will enhance property values in the dis­trict, which is in everyone’s interest."

Residents of Manalapan and Englishtown will pay $34.5 million to­ward the project and the state will pay $14.3 million.

The projected tax increase for resi­dents in Manalapan for the first four years will be $149 per year based on a home with an assessed value of $250,000. For Englishtown residents the tax increase will be $109 per year for a home assessed at $180,000.

From year five through year 25, the payments will change. The referendum payment for Manalapan residents will move to $256 per year for a home as­sessed at $250,000, and the payment for an Englishtown resident will move to $187 for a home assessed at $180,000.

The construction plan calls for the addition of 22 classrooms at the Manalapan Englishtown Middle School, while expanding the school’s gym and cafeteria, and replacing roofs, heating systems, and/or windows in five of the district’s elementary schools.

The other major component of the project will be the construction of a new wing at the Clark Mills School that will house all of the district’s preschool handicapped pupils and kindergarten pupils. The planned assignment of all kindergarten pupils to Clark Mills will allow administrators to create four more classrooms in each K-3 building in the district.

The construction project also proposes improvements and upgrades at Taylor Mills School, Milford Brook School, Pine Brook School and Lafayette Mills School.

Administrators have said these pro­jects will provide for the anticipated 722 new students who are expected to be in the K-8 school district by 2007, based on new home construction in Manalapan and Englishtown.

Mumolie said the board expects to break ground in the summer of 2004. David Pease, a principal in the firm Design Resources Group, Raritan, is the architect for the projects.

On Oct. 1, the day after the referen­dum vote, Lally said administrators ex­pect to work diligently to stay on the proposed time line.

"Our first meeting with the architect for the next step, the pre-construction phase of the project, is today [Oct. 1]," Lally said. "As we move along, all the residents will see the fruition of what was promised in the referendum."