Freehold Township voters approved $40 million referendum for school security, roofs and infrastructure, board says

Freehold Township School District Board of Education leaders told the board that a voter-approved referendum will provide $40,000,000 designated for aging school infrastructure, security upgrades and roof repairs.

Board leadership said the referendum dollars are restricted to capital improvements and “must be spent on that,” and cannot be used for operating expenses. "We want security — doors, windows, buildings. So $40,000,000 coming in ... but that money cannot be tapped into or anything else. It must be spent on that," the Board President said during remarks.

The district publicly posted a longer list of referendum projects, the board said, and invited residents to review the list online. Board members framed the referendum money as separate from the district’s operating budget and noted that it should not be used to cover contract settlements, ongoing personnel costs or other recurring expenses.

Board members did not vote on any spending plan at the meeting; discussion focused on explaining the referendum’s purpose and constraints. No project-level contracts or timelines were approved during the session.

The board’s remarks made two funding categories explicit: (1) referendum capital funds restricted to infrastructure/security and (2) the operating “bucket” funded by annual tax revenues and subject to budget caps and negotiations.

Looking ahead, the board said staff will bring detailed project proposals and procurement items for future agenda consideration once planning and design work proceeds.