Woodbridge cancels voter-approved plan to build new elementary school. Now what?
WOODBRIDGE – The township school district has canceled plans to build a new Avenel Street School after construction delayed by the COVID pandemic and supply shortages have driven up the cost by at least $15 million, Superintendent of Schools Joseph Massimino said at last week’s Board of Education meeting.
Voters approved $35 million for the new elementary school in an $88 million referendum in March 2020 just before the pandemic, funding that will now go toward renovating the existing school, the superintendent said.
"A few days after that referendum passed, we were struck with COVID. The pandemic obviously changed our world, and the projects were put on hold for quite some time," Massimino said.
The school's builder, AECOM, told the superintendent that the new cost would be at least $15 million more than the original pre-pandemic $35 million price tag to build the school, he said.
"They say to us that they would not be able to complete the project without additional revenue, as well as dramatically changing the scope of the building," Massimino said. "They told us the increase in project costs and financing had dramatically changed through the inflationary cycle that has gripped our country and it's exacerbated by supply-chain issues obtaining steel, lumber, some of the interior fit out items for construction."
Avenel Street School, which is the oldest in the district at more than 100 years old, houses approximately 400 students in grades K-5. The new school, set to be home to 700 K-5 students, was planned for 6 acres on Rahway Avenue and would include 33 full-sized classrooms, a cafeteria and full-sized gym with stage.
In a letter to the community Wednesday, Massimino said school district officials discussed the situation and decided “the best course of action would be to pivot to a more efficient, functional solution and dedicate the remaining funds in the referendum to new construction and renovations” at the current school.
"The plan would parallel the work underway at Lafayette Estates Elementary School #25 and Matthew Jago Elementary School #28," Massimino said. "This new construction will allow for the building to remain open while enhancing the gymnasium and cafeteria and adding several new classrooms."
Approximately $2.5 million has been spent on the Rahway Avenue site, which the district never took ownership of, for architectural design plans, engineering services, site exploration, legal fees, and various permits, Massimino added in the letter.
Massimino said that the construction at the existing school would be similar to the original plan for the new school.
"We're working with architects obviously," he said. "The process that got us here is something that we have to take a good long hard look at. That was 30 months ago. So we're trying to figure out how we can best utilize and get the most bang for our buck so to speak. The plan right now is to have an equal size program building that we originally had planned for."
email: cmakin@gannettnj.com
Cheryl Makin is an award-winning features and education reporter for MyCentralJersey.com, part of the USA Today Network. Contact: Cmakin@gannettnj.com or @CherylMakin. To get unlimited access, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: Woodbridge NJ cancels plan to build new Avenel Street School
