The district’s architect has presented a final report and the Board of Education is expected to decide how it wants to expand the schools Monday night.
By: Chris Karmiol
The moment of truth arrives this Monday at the first East Windsor Regional Board of Education meeting of the new year, when the board is expected to decide which direction to take on a school expansion plan.
The Prisco Group, an architectural firm that specializes in educational facilities, presented its final report to the school board this week.
"We met with all the principals and we met with the administration," said Scott Prisco, president of The Prisco Group. "It was a great help to meet with everyone again."
As Mr. Prisco warned during previous presentations, the cost of school expansion will be higher than previously expected.
"You’re going to see the budget go up," he said. "The numbers will go up higher. The board (is) aware of this."
The rise in cost is due to the addition of permanent partitions in the "open-space" classroom areas of district schools. There are approximately 35,000 square feet of open space at the Perry L. Drew School, 38,000 square feet at the Ethel McKnight School, 10,000 square feet at the Melvin H. Kreps School, and 8,000 square feet at Hightstown High School.
"Years ago in the ’60s someone had this wonderful concept of open classrooms," Mr. Prisco said. "It worked for 20 years. With the style of teaching today it really doesn’t work. Most schools have already transformed open space into classrooms."
Transforming open space is not the issue at hand, though. The school district, which is on the verge of serious overcrowding, will decide among three proposed options:
building a new fifth- and sixth-grade middle school and renovating existing facilities;
building a new seventh- and eighth-grade middle school and renovating existing facilities;
or building additions and renovations on all existing schools.
In The Prisco Group’s initial report, these costs were estimated anywhere between $32 million and $43 million.
Following Monday’s anticipated vote, the board will begin a process to seek a September bond referendum to fund construction. The board also hopes to take advantage of a piece of the $2.6 billion in funds currently available from the New Jersey State School Facilities Act.
"There’s a lot of districts going after that funding," Mr. Prisco said. "If (the board) acts prudently, I think the money will be there. After that, I don’t know."
The meeting will take place at 7:30 p.m. Monday in the cafeteria of the Rogers School.