Election Day: Vote On $23.9M Proposed Point Beach Schools Projects

POINT PLEASANT BEACH, NJ — Voters are set to head to the polls Tuesday to voice their opinion on a proposed $23.9 million package of facilities projects for the Point Pleasant Beach School District.

The polls will be open from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. for residents of Point Pleasant Beach and Mantoloking to cast ballots.

Voting information

The polling places for in-person voting are the Point Pleasant Beach fire house at 614 Laurel Ave. for Point Pleasant Beach residents, and the Mantoloking municipal building at 202 Downer Ave. for Mantoloking residents.

View the sample ballot here.

Voters who received vote-by-mail ballots have until 8 p.m. Tuesday, when polls close, to drop off those ballots. Vote-by-mail ballots can be dropped off at the following secure drop boxes.

• Point Pleasant Borough Library, 834 Beaver Dam Road, Point Pleasant
• Lavallette Library (Upper Shores), 112 Jersey City Avenue, Lavallette
• Ocean County Parking Garage, 3rd Floor, Madison Avenue, Toms River
• Ocean County Courthouse, 118 Washington Street, Toms River

What's in the package

The district has a page on its website with information about the various projects included in the referendum along with a calculator to see how much the project will affect your property taxes if approved.

Funding for the proposed $23.9 million package includes $2 million from the Point Pleasant Beach school district's capital reserves and $2 million in state aid.

Bonds for $21.9 million would be issued; the state aid would offset the debt service.

In addition, if voters approve the package, resident Robert Sickel, owner of the Pine Belt auto franchise, has said he will donate $1 million to be used to reduce the debt service.

The tax impact would be $420 per year or $35.25 per month for a home assessed at the median $569,391 value in Point Pleasant Beach.

The following items are proposed in the package:

At G. Harold Antrim Elementary:

• Repairs to the building envelope at Antrim, including cleaning masonry, repairing brick, replacing and repairing stairs and lintels (lintels are the horizontal support across the top of a door or window).
• Security access controls at all exterior doors
• A new fire alarm system (upgraded to current technology)
• New corridor flooring that reflects the schools' colors
• New LED lighting (for energy efficiency)
• Hall locker upgrades with new paint and new locks as needed
• Updating the stage lighting in the auditorium
• Renovating the existing locker rooms.

The locker rooms at Antrim have showers that have not been used in years, and instead are being used for storage. There are leaks in the ceiling in the showers that have to be repaired, and those spaces would be turned into useful spaces. The sinks in the locker rooms also are more than 20 years old.

At the high school:

• New high-efficiency boilers would be installed for heating
• Hallways would get new flooring that shows the school's colors
• New LED lighting would be installed, which will save on energy costs
• Hall lockers would be upgraded with new paint and new locks as needed
• A classroom that serves the food, fashion and child care courses would be updated with new equipment and new items that are in step with the current times. The classroom hasn't been updated in about 20 years.

The tennis courts at the high school, which are unstable and badly deteriorating, would be removed and replaced with an outdoor space that would serve multiple uses. It would include an outdoor classroom area and could include items such as a space for yoga classes. It would have tables for students to eat and relax outdoors during their lunch period, and area where phys ed classes could be held for things like badminton or ultimate Frisbee.

The athletic complex at Antrim:

• New tennis courts, which would be available for use for pickleball as well as tennis.
• The football field would become a turf field.
• The track surface would be replaced.
• The bleachers would be replaced, and mobile bleachers would be purchased for other sporting events.
• A new concession seating area would be created
• An inclusive playground for special needs students as well as general education students
• A basketball court
• A maintenance building.

A field house and collaborative educational center.

• A basketball court
• A turf field (half size) for football, soccer, softball
• A multipurpose area for strength and conditioning, wrestling
• New team rooms
• Teacher and staff wellness areas
• A multipurpose meeting room to be used for occupational and physical therapy and music, which does not have a dedicated room. The room would be used for professional development sessions and the Board of Education, including meetings. The multipurpose room also would be able to be used by the community.
• Offices for the administration and child study team.

Read more: Point Pleasant Beach Schools $23.9M Referendum Projects: First Look