Budget, Custodians Approved; Incumbents Ousted

Voters by a wide margin approved a $56 million tax levy supporting the school district’s $61 million budget and approved a second question supporting an additional levy to retain six custodians cut under the 2011-12 spending plan.

In preliminary tallies, voters approved the district’s proposed $56,829,239 million tax levy in support of the $61 million budget by a vote of 2,782 to 2,225, according to the Monmouth County Board of Elections.

The second question, concerning an additional $324,830 to retain six custodians, was approved by a vote of 2,687 to 2,286.

"Obviously, we're very pleased with the outcome,'' said schools Business Administrator Brian Smyth. "And we view this as a positive step in the right direction for the Wall Township School System.''-

In the school board elections, voters sent all newcomers to the board, ousting every incumbent from the panel. Robin Cervantes, Anne Moonan and Joe Tonzola won three-year terms. John Tavis handily won a 1-year unexpired term.

Moonan was the top vote-getter with 2,449. Cervantes also won a three-year term with 2,238 votes. Tonzola earned 2,190 votes to also win a three-year term on the panel.

In the race for a 1-year unexpired term voters chose Tavis with 2,018 votes. Incumbent Pam Perrotto received 1,176 in her losing bid.

Timothy Farrell received 1,442 votes in Wednesday’s polling and  Incumbent Doug Wild garnered 1,132 votes. Incumbent David Wren received 953 votes.

Michael Manson, who had withdrawn from the race, nonetheless received 591 votes. Michael Tranberg, who also withdrew from the race received 499.

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The full election result tally sheet is now attached to this story in .pdf form

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The vote caps a long budget and election season that had its beginnings back in December when a group of residents primarily from the neighborhood around West Belmar School organized when the Board of Education began considering the closure of that school in order to save $1 million.

Signs were erected. Websites sprouted. School Board meetings quickly became hours-long affairs lasting past midnight.

From those early, occasionally contentious, meetings that grew larger each month, a community discussion played out inside and outside the school board’s regular sessions.

The decision to shutter the district’s oldest and smallest school was ultimately shelved by the board, which then forwarded the idea that the district’s entire custodial staff would instead be outsourced to save roughly the same amount of money.

But no one told the custodians first.

More meetings were packed. Letters of support for the custodians were written. Finally, the Wall Township Education Association, the teachers’ union, decided to make concessions in their upcoming contract in order to retain all but six of the custodians. Those cost to retain those six was included in the second ballot question, which was approved Wednesday.

Through all of this, 11 people in March decided to run for Board of Education seats. One dropped out days later. Then another. And another -- until only eight were left for three, three-year terms and a single, 1-year unexpired term.

Manson and Tranberg remained on the ballot because each man dropped out of the race after the state-mandated deadline to do so.