Members discuss high school athletic upgrades
By Matt Nelson, Special Writer
HIGHTSTOWN — Robert Laverty was selected to keep his position as the Board of Education president for the East Windsor Regional School District at Tuesday night’s reorganization meeting.
Vice President Kenneth Paul nominated him for the role.
Mr. Laverty said, “I appreciate being re-elected to a second term (as board president). We have an ambitious year ahead of us. We have to think about what long-term plans we want to do, not just for 2013, but for the next few years as well.”
Tuesday night, Peter Bussone, Paul Connolly, Mr. Paul and Alice Weisman were sworn in to begin board terms after winning elections in November.
Mr. Bussone ran unopposed for Hightstown’s lone seat to fill a vacancy. Mr. Bussone now is serving a two-year term.
In a contested race for three East Windsor seats on the Board of Education, incumbents Kenneth Paul and Paul Connolly both kept their seats in November.
Mr. Connolly told the Herald in November, “It is a privilege to serve as a board volunteer — like so many other parents, I realize that if we want better schools, we need to actively contribute to the process.”
Ms. Weisman, who lost her East Windsor seat in April 2011 to board member Lisa Abel, told the Herald after winning a seat back in November, “We all are committed to working hard for the children of our district.”
She added, “I want to see our district continue to improve and to deliver the best possible education to every student.”
Newcomer Lilia Gobaira lost her bid for an East Windsor seat in November.
Last year, longtime board member Bruce Ettman chose not to run for a sixth term.
Tuesday, Mr. Paul was chosen by the board to continue as its vice president in 2013.
Additionally, the board discussed a resolution that would authorize lease-purchase financing of Hightstown High School’s athletic stadium upgrades. Discussions from this meeting indicated the football field could become a turf field.
The cost of this project, according to the resolution, is said to not exceed $2.232 million.
”I’m a big fan of turf fields,” Mr. Connolly said. “We need them. I believe all the other districts have it, and it has a significant benefit to the student athletes. My concern is to whether or not we looked into the condition of the other fields and do we have the money available to put in a turf field and keep the grass field that we already have?”
He also said the Hightstown High School varsity football team plays approximately five home games per season at the David J. McIntire Football Field.
Mr. Connolly said if the board puts the new stadium into the existing area of the current field, it will be smaller than the turf fields of other high schools in the surrounding areas.
Superintendent Edward Forsthoffer said, “There’s not a substantial difference between our fields and our football stadium with respect to the quality. We’ve walked the fields, and it’s not that our high school football stadium is far as appeared to the other fields. The one area where junior varsity lacrosse and junior varsity field hockey plays on is our worst field.”
According to Mr. Forsthoffer, the end zone that is closer to the woods has a 5-foot elevation change than the lower field. One of his issues is drainage.
”It simply causes us to have wet fields, and we can’t have that at Hightstown High School,” he said. “If it rains the night before a game, then you’re not going to have the game the next day.”
He also said he wants to have all the materials on hand so the renovation and construction can start the day the students leave for summer break in mid-June.
”We want the fields available for practice seasons, which start in the second week of August,” Mr. Forsthoffer said.
Mr. Forsthoffer said it was coming off a five-year lease purchase, which allowed the superintendent to look at capital improvements. New lighting also would be installed along with new turf, a press box and scoreboard.
The current grandstands recently were updated and are not part of the project.
”Our band has trouble getting onto the field until the week before the first home game of the season. We don’t want to tear up the conditions of the field,” Mr. Forsthoffer added.
Ms. Weisman said the school has never hosted a marching band competition due to the lack of facilities.
Mr. Forsthoffer said that is the ultimate hope.
”We would probably need more grandstands, and we can’t get that into the project due to the money involved,” Mr. Forsthoffer stated.
The following sports could play and practice on the new turf field: field hockey, band, football, boys and girls soccer and boys and girls lacrosse. The same could be said for health and physical education.
The resolution was passed with Mr. Connolly and Ms. Weisman abstaining.
The next Board of Education meeting is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Jan. 28 in the high school cafeteria.

