Celebration marks end to a long, bumpy road Dignitaries help Monroe break ground on new high school BY JESSICA SMITH Staff Writer MONROE- Some thought it could not be done. Others tried to prevent it. Still others were driven to make it a reality. For all of these groups, Friday was a big day. School, township, county and state officials, along with students and residents, gathered to take part in the groundbreaking for the new high school in Thompson Park. Located on Schoolhouse Road, the site is across the street from the existing high school. "We have waited a long time for thismoment," said Board of Educationmember Joe Homoki, who served as master of ceremonies for the event. Homoki extended thanks to a number of individuals who supported the project, but one stood out in particular. "[Board of Education President] Kathy Kolupanowich's determination, leadership and conviction led us to where we are today," Homoki said. Before officials took the stage, sounds frommembers of the high school'smusic department filled the unseasonably warmair, as did the voices of the crowd of about 100 that milled about the future high school site. The Applegarth Middle School Chorus opened the ceremony with the national anthem, and high school Senior Class President Nicole Ragucci led the "Pledge of Allegiance." Kolupanowich, the first of a number of speakers, also expressed gratitude to all who supported the project. "It has not, as we all know, been an easy road for us," Kolupanowich said. An early roadblock was the 2002 defeat of a referendum that would have allowed the board to purchase land for the new school on Applegarth Road. Though the measure was approved by a large number of voters throughout the town, the township's senior population voted it down. School officials searched for another site on which to build the school, and settled on a 35-acre parcel in Thompson Park. In order to secure the site in the county-owned park, the district needed county and state approval. The following year brought a round of success, when residents approved an $83 million referendumto build the school. The Middlesex County Board of Chosen Freeholders approved a land diversion that would swap acreage owned by the township for the park land. It was not until early in 2006 when the State House Commission unanimously approved the deal, to the chagrin of opponents who sought to keep the park land just that. Along with 172 acres of township-owned land, the town was to pay a supplement of $1.127 million to make up for the park land's appraised value. Of that amount, $500,000 was to go toward building new soccer fields in the park, while the remainder would go toward other park improvements. Amonth later, a group of residents and environmentalists filed an appeal in an effort to have the state decision overturned. That battle raged on for over a year, and the board emerged victorious. Still, the board awaited approval from the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), something that did not come easy. Efforts largely spearheaded by Richard Walling, a vocal opponent of the project, brought attention to the fact that an area in or near the park was once home to the Leni Lenape Bethel Mission Settlement, which dates back to 1746. With Walling and others insisting that the high school site was where the settlement once stood, the DEP required an archaeological investigation of the site in order to determine if that was the case. After completing a phase-one investigation, archaeologists determined that Bethel was located roughly a half-mile from the tract in question. They stated that the settlement was located on the former Redmond Farm, adjoining the Lane family property, where an orchard and a spring once existed in the 1840s. Aconditional approval from the DEP finally came in September 2007, when the agency ruled to release 31.4 acres of the total 35. The few acres were held back because artifacts, mostly of European origin, were found there. Reduction of the site's acreage called for modifications to the school's design, but changes were minimal. Despite the ruling, Walling did not give up. In November, he filed suit against the DEP and StateHistoric Preservation Office (SHPO), as well as several county and township officials. Among his allegations was the assertion that laws and regulations were not followed. According to Township Attorney Joel Shain, U.S. Magistrate Judge Tonianne Bongiovanni had the involved parties take part in a telephone conference Friday. Walling agreed to dismiss the complaint with prejudice, meaning he cannot bring that complaint back into the courts in the future, Shain said. Due to delays, projected costs associated with the new school escalated. Prices for labor and materials increased, as well as the foreseen enrollment numbers for the facility. In December, voters approved an additional $41.9million to get the school built. Though the process was long and complicated, it certainly was worthy," Middlesex County Freeholder Director David B. Crabiel said. State Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein summed it up more simply. "There's only one word for today, and that's 'hallelujah,' " Greenstein said. Mayor Richard Pucci, like the other speakers, praised the efforts of all involved withmaking the project a reality, including township voters. He lauded the lack of partisanship displayed during the process. "When it comes to educating our children, there is no such thing as partisanship, except for bipartisanship," Pucci said. "This is one of those efforts that comes along, politically and governmentally, once in a lifetime. We were one big family, and today we celebrate." The mayor also shared some thoughts he had, in keeping with the festive spirit of the event. "I looked at the six shovels and I said, 'OK, now with our luck, one of us will dig a little too deep and find something we didn't want to find,'" Pucci said, to laughter from those in attendance. Homoki later assured him jokingly that all bases were covered, since they had brought in a mound of dirt for the ceremonial digging. Pucci and others gave a great amount of credit to Kids 1st co-chairwoman Jackie Winters. "We would not be here, believeme when I tell you, if it wasn't for the spark Jackie had for this project," Pucci said. When Winters was called up to speak, she also called on everymember of Kids 1st to join her in front of the stage. "They deserve as much credit as I do," Winters said. "They kept me going."