Move to add $13M to project
By: Rebecca Weltmann
UPPER FREEHOLD After a heated debate and an hour of closed session discussion, the Upper Regional Board of Education voted last week to prepare a $13 million referendum moving the proposed middle school project from Ellisdale Road to Breza Road.
The referendum, which school officials hope to have ready for April 17, will add to the former referendum of $38.6 million, which was passed in December 2004.
On Feb. 7, the board voted 7-3 in favor of the move, saying the decision was not only in the best interest of the children, but the quickest way to get the middle school project completed. The decision followed a presentation by Hill International, the contractor slated to complete the project. The presentation outlined an estimate comparison of the costs between the Ellisdale Road and Breza Road sites.
The results of the presentation, said Paul D’Alto of Hill International, "are not conclusive. There are pieces of the puzzle that aren’t in there. This is based on the information we have now."
According to the presentation, the Ellisdale Road site would require an additional $10.7 million; under a best-case scenario, construction would begin in April 2008 and be completed by September 2010. The completed project would be expected to cost $47.6 million.
While it is a cheaper alternative to stay on Ellisdale Road, to do so would require approval by the state Department of Environmental Protection of a wastewater management plan. As of the meeting last week, the board had not received a DEP go-ahead from the to put any shovels in the ground at Ellisdale Road. The project is expected to take approximately 24 months to complete, regardless of when construction actually commences.
The Breza Road site, while it calls for an additional $13 million, would mean construction could begin sooner since the board would not have to wait for a letter from the DEP. So far, the site has not shown any evidence of contamination. Seven soil samples have been taken of the required 13 from the Breza Road site. Those six samples, according to the board, have come back clean. The board is not certain of when the rest of the samples will be taken, but said it expects it will be soon.
"We know more about the Breza Road site now than we ever did about the Ellisdale Road site," said board Chairman Joseph Stampe. "We need the school very quickly. We’re so overcrowded and we need to do what’s in the best interest of our children."
According to Mr. D’Alto, the Breza Road site, in the best case scenario, would have construction completed by January 2010. In the worst case scenario, it would open in September 2010 in time for the new class to enter.
Construction could run into problems, though, since the time it will take to construct a bridge from Breza Road onto the property could overlap a start of construction. Construction on the $1.6 million bridge would start a month and a half after the start of the school’s construction, based on the best case scenario.
It was the unanswered questions and list of unknowns that contributed to Lisa Herzer, Jeanette Bressi and Stephen Murphy’s reasons for voting no on the move.
"I really felt it should have been put out to voters about where we were going to go," Ms. Herzer said.
Ms. Bressi echoed her sentiments, saying, "There are no guarantees, not even a reality yet of building on Breza. We’re going to spend millions (in) taxpayers’ money without guarantees, and I struggle with that."
While the board stressed that the numbers were based on the information available at the time of the meeting and were not conclusive, the information the board had available wasn’t good enough for many members of the public.
"I’m in favor of getting this school built soon," said Bryan Schaff, of Ridgeview Way. "I have a 6- and (an) 8-year-old in the school system now. The board stated earlier that as an elected body, you should make the decision based on an assessment of the risks. It seems like we’re still lacking in that."
Board members agreed that a decision needed to be reached in order to have the referendum for the additional money on the April ballot. The next time the board would be able to present a referendum would not be until September, a time frame that the board was not keen on accepting.
The board assured the public that should the referendum for Breza Road fail, it will still have the contract and passed referendum for Ellisdale Road. What it will have to do, Mr. Stampe said, is look at redesigning the building to fit the budgeted price. In the case of going over budget, though, the board may have to look at making compromises on the certain items at the Breza Road site as well.
The idea of eliminating or changing some of the items drew fire from the public, but the board was quick to assure them that the items are up for discussion and are not final. A final decision will be made on the items once the final decision is made on the Breza Road site.
While the vote to move the middle school’s location was divided, the board remained undivided in its desire to work in the best interest of the children. Despite of the opposition to the plan and the split decision about the new location for the middle school, Mr. Stampe said he was encouraged by the way the board worked together to make the decision to change the location.
"The discussion we had in closed session, while we do not have unanimous consent, it was productive," he said. "The collegiality of this board is the best I’ve ever seen here. This is one of the most difficult decisions this board has ever had to make and I truly believe that we are acting in the best interest of our kids."
If the referendum ultimately is struck down, the board still has the Ellisdale Road site to fall back on.

