Committee to Pitch Improvement Projects to School Board

Members of the Community Facilities Committee, a citizens group organized to research improvement projects for the Brick school district's buildings, will make a presentation to the Board of Education at its meeting Thursday night.

Since word of the presentation made its way into the community, rumors have swirled that the group would be requesting the Board of Education hold a referendum on projects its members might favor. But whether any members of the committee make such a request, a formal motion at Thursday's meeting to place a referendum on a future electoral ballot looks unlikely.

Board member Kim Terebush, who helped spearhead the creation of the committee, said she did not believe any decisions on whether to hold a referendum requesting extra funding for capital projects would be made immediately. But she did say suggestions from committee members were the result of a great deal of work and research.

A letter penned by committee member Sandra Richardson and obtained by Brick Patch indicates that the committee will, indeed, request a referendum be put in front of voters at some point.

"On behalf of the Community Facilities Committee, I am asking your help in spreading the word that on Thursday, 7/21 our Committee will be asking the Brick Board of Education to put forth a referendum to improve our schools with the State of New Jersey picking up 40% of the total cost.," Richardson wrote in a letter to PTA organizations in town, requesting support at the meeting.

Richardson, when writing that the state would fund 40 percent of the cost of improvements, is referring to state Regular Operating District, or ROD, grants - matching grants that are available to school districts which allocate its own funding toward capital projects.

Board President Sharon Kight also encouraged members of the community to attend Thursday's meeting, but cautioned that before any decisions can be made on potential referendums or capital project approvals, all the facts need to be put on the table.

"Our buildings are in disrepair and they do need attention, we just need to go about the best and most fiscally responsible way to do it," Kight said.

Since April, the school board has decided to dedicate about $5 million to capital improvement projects.

"This board has put more money into capital improvements than any other board in the last 20 years," said Kight. "I'd like to see money spent as efficiently as possible."

Previous referendums on capital projects for the Brick school district have been met with mixed results. A $4.7 million referendum passed in Dec. 2008, but a Sept. 2009 measure failed to gain voter support. In March, school board members placing a referendum on the April 27 ballot.

The meeting, which includes the presentation from the facilities committee, will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday at Brick Township High School.