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Upper Freehold Regional board awaits confirmation of referendum’s approval

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The Upper Freehold Regional School District Board of Education is waiting for Monmouth County to certify the results of its $7.18 million construction referendum, which appears to have been approved by voters in the Nov. 6 election.

Unofficial results posted online by the Monmouth County Clerk’s Office show the referendum passing by a count of 2,123 “yes” votes to 2,068 “no” votes. The results will not be official until they are certified by the county.

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If those results hold, school board members, district administrators and residents who supported the referendum can thank the voters of Allentown, who voted in favor of the referendum by a 93-vote margin, 494 “yes” to 401 “no.”

The results in Allentown overcame a 38-vote margin of defeat in Upper Freehold Township, where voters rejected the referendum by a count of 1,667 “no” to 1,629 “yes.”

On Nov. 12, school board President Patricia Hogan said, “The board is cautiously optimistic about the unofficial results of the referendum. Thanks to the hard work of (board members) Rick Smith and Lara Michaud, (Business Administrator) Peg Hom and (Superintendent of Schools) Mark Guterl, every member of the board and the professionals at Spiezle Architectural Group, LLC, it seems the public, in its majority, are supportive.

“We appreciate the public support in these challenging economic times. Once we have official confirmation, we will begin the process of creating bid specifications, etc. It is our intention to be completely transparent through every step of the process. We will continue the Facebook Live events as things develop to keep the public informed. The board is committed to being good stewards of our taxpayers’ resources,” Hogan said.

The referendum consisted of three components that administrators said are necessary for the district:

• Roof repair and replacement, $5.86 million. Administrators said all of the roofs are at the end of their useful life, are no longer under warranty and patches are beginning to fail. A new roof would come with a 20-year warranty and approval of the new roof would eliminate roof maintenance costs in the district’s annual budget;

• Emergency generator at the Newell Elementary School, $203,125. Administrators said a generator would increase student safety and security, provide additional lighting in corridors and stairwells, provide lighting in restrooms during extended outages and provide power to the elevator;

• Auditorium repairs at Allentown High School, $1.12 million. Plans call for repairing the stage floor, upgrading aging electrical systems, repairing lighting systems and fixtures and replacing an unreliable sound system. Administrators said the systems date back to 1964.

The estimated interest on the referendum projects is $3.25 million, for a total cost of $10.438 million. State funding in the amount of $3.549 million is expected, leaving taxpayers in Allentown and Upper Freehold with an obligation of $6.889 million, according to district administrators.

With the passage of the referendum, the owner of a home assessed at the Allentown average of $290,270 is expected to pay an additional $71 per year in school taxes for 20 years. The owner of a home assessed at the Upper Freehold Township average of $473,400 is expected to pay an additional $115 per year in school taxes for 20 years, according to Business Administrator Margaret Hom.

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