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Public asks board for clearer referendum timeline after district cites DEP constraints
Summary
A resident pressed the Rockaway Township Board of Education for clearer public notice after press materials suggested the March referendum might be postponed; the board said there will be no March vote and cited Department of Environmental Protection concerns, including impacts on Indiana bats, as a factor in delaying the referendum.
A resident raised questions at the Rockaway Township Board of Education meeting about unclear district communications surrounding an upcoming school referendum, and board leadership responded that environmental review issues with the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) have delayed any March vote.
Megan O'Connor told the board she had read a Dec. 20 press release that said the district was "exploring the option of an alternative referendum date later than March 2025," and she asked the board to issue definitive public notice clarifying whether a March referendum would proceed. "It really shouldn't be a matter of somebody from the public like myself asking a question to get clarity on it," O'Connor said.
A district official replied, "We can say definitively that there will be no referendum in March," adding that the district does not yet have a future referendum date. The official said the district "ran into a brick wall with the DEP" and cited concerns about Indiana bats as the reason the district could not proceed as planned. "The DEP is putting Indiana bats ahead of the importance of students," the speaker said, noting the board is meeting with architects to develop options that avoid DEP conflicts.
The community outreach committee chair said the committee expected to meet with the architects on Jan. 29 and listed the four calendar windows the district may use for a referendum: March, September, November and December. The chair said more information would come after the architect meeting but did not give a specific date.
Board officials acknowledged a multi-step approval process that includes the Department of Education and said they would provide updates when a date is set. The board did not set a referendum date at the meeting.
Context and clarifications: The transcript uses the wording "DEP concerns" and references "Indiana bats" as the environmental issue affecting the district's plans. The district repeatedly said only that a March referendum will not occur and that officials will continue outreach and work with architects and the state Department of Education on the schedule.
What remains open: a firm referendum date and the extent to which DEP-mandated environmental mitigation will change project scope or schedule; the board said those details remain under review.
Next steps: the community outreach committee will meet architect representatives and the board will provide additional public communications following that review.
