Toms River district says sale of office building could help cover $12.4M gap as lawsuit over funding continues

The Toms River Regional School District is pursuing one-time asset options to cover a budget shortfall for the 2024–25 year, district leaders told the school board. The superintendent said the district still faces roughly a $12.4 million gap and is negotiating with the county for the possible purchase of the district’s business office building at 1144.

The superintendent, speaking to the board, said the district has had six properties appraised and that 1144 — a roughly 92,000-square-foot corporate center currently housing the district business office and an early learning center (ELC) classroom — was appraised at about $16 million. He described two ways districts can realize cash from real property: a public sale through competitive bidding or a government-to-government transfer that can preserve taxpayer ownership. “There are two ways to sell assets when you are a school district,” the superintendent said, adding that partnering with a government agency could avoid an open public bid and keep the property as a taxpayer asset.

District officials said moving the ELC into a school building (the superintendent cited North Dover/Northover elementary as a potential site) would place preschool classrooms into a school setting, which officials said would be less disruptive to students and provide better access to resources. The superintendent said the move and the potential sale are intended to prevent a cash-flow default in May that could trigger state monitoring or takeover and to preserve staff positions and student programming in the short term.

The superintendent also reiterated that the district has filed suit against the state, asserting the school funding formula is inequitable and contributed to the district’s fiscal strain; litigation and legislative efforts, he said, are longer-term fixes. He characterized any property sale or transfer as a “one-time Band-Aid” while the district pursues legal and legislative remedies.

The board did not vote on a sale at the meeting. Board members and members of the public asked questions about timing, use of proceeds and whether proceeds would be used to cover immediate operating needs; the superintendent said negotiations were ongoing and that the district was working to ensure funds to complete the school year. The district also said any county purchase would preserve the building as a taxpayer-owned asset and could avoid a multiyear construction cost that public purchase would otherwise impose.

If completed, the transaction would be a short-term fiscal measure; the superintendent emphasized that the district views the effort as an interim step while continuing litigation and legislative advocacy to change the funding formula.

The board will consider any formal sale or transfer only after negotiated terms are presented and after the board has an opportunity to review how proceeds would be used to meet legal and budgetary requirements.