Parlapanides Makes Last-Ditch Effort for Budget Passage

For the past month, schools Superintendent Triantafillos "Tom" Parlapanides has been taking his budget show on the road.

He and school Business Administrator Kevin O'Shea have lugged their projection screen, briefcases and handouts to clubhouses in senior citizen communities, homeowners' associations and Parent Teacher Associations.

Last night was no exception. They came to the Berkeley Township Council meeting to ask voters to approve the $27,489,152 tax levy today. The polls are open from 2 to 9 p.m.

"I'll sleep when I'm dead," Parlapanides joked before the meeting began. "We've been everywhere, talking to anybody that will listen. We have to be transparent with other people's money. You' ve got to let them know where it's going."

Parlapanides has focused on cutting costs and raising revenue since he took over as superintendent of the five-town sending district several years ago. Middle and high school students from Berkeley Township, Island Heights, Ocean Gate, Seaside Heights and Seaside Park attend Central Regional.

"We're going to squeeze every dime, every nickel," he said.

The district will cut between five teaching positions through attrition because overall enrollment in both the middle and high schools is down, he said.

Freshman sports, with the exception of football and girls lacrosse, have been eliminated, Parlapanides said.

The district is hampered by the small amount of state aid it receives. Central Regional only receives 11 percent state aid to fund the budget each year, unlike some other districts that receive much more, he said.

"Eighty-nine percent of the budget is on the taxpayers," Parlapanides said.

The district will eventually reap $2,300 a  month from T-Mobile rental fees for cell towers installed on school property. The district cut some traditional vacation time over the past school year so the schools can close on June 8.

An energy study determined that June is the most expensive month of the year, with air conditioning costs topping $2,000 a day. The heat has been turned down two degrees during the winter months and air conditioning has been turned up two degrees during the warmer months, Parlapanides said.

Lights in the school bathrooms are equipped with motion sensors that turn the lights off when the facilities are not in use. But it's the district's massive solar panel project in both schools that will result in bigger savings. When the project is completed in September, both schools will be off the power grid, he said.

Berkeley Township Taxpayers Coalition president Samuel J. Cammarato asked Parlapanides why the budget had increased $866,000 since last year.

"You are going  up rather than going down," he said.

Parlapanides said the budget was within the 2 percent state cap. But the district has no control over some expenditures like health care cost from current contracts and the price of gas.

Seaside Park residents will see the biggest increase, primarily because of a rise in property tax assessments. Borough residents will pay an additional $247.82 or 0.0444 cents per $100 of assessed value in the coming year, primarily because the average home in the waterfront borough is assessed at $558,160.

Island Heights also had a larger increase because of the influx of 15 more students. Some parents who might have sent their children to Monsignor Donovan High School in Toms River are now opting for Central, because tuition is now $12,000 a year at Monsignor Donovan, O'Shea said

The current budget also includes $100,000 for new math textbooks to replace the current textbooks, which are 10 years old, O'Shea said.

If the proposed tax levy - or the amount to be raised by taxation is approved by voters - property owners who reside in:

Berkeley Township, with an average assessed home value of $201,400, will face an increase of $11.28 for the 2011/2012 tax year, an increase of .0056 cents per $100 of assessed value. The current tax rate for the Central Regional school district is 0.3697 cents per $100 of assessed value.

Island Heights, with an average assessed home value of $388,981, will face an increase of $224.83 for the 2011/2012 tax year, an increase of 0.0578 cents per $100 of assessed value. The current tax rate for the Central Regional School District is 0.3007 cents per $100 of assessed value.

Ocean Gate, with an average assessed home value of $242,300, will face an increase of $37.56 for the 2011/2012 tax year, an increase of 0.0155 cents per $100 of assessed value. The current tax rate for the Central Regional School District is 0.3583 cents per $100 of assessed value.

Seaside Heights, with an average assessed home value of $302,035, will see a decrease of $9.36 or 0.0031 cents per $100 of assessed value. The current tax rate for Central Regional school district is 0.2957 cents per $100 of assessed value.

There will be two contested races for the three, three-year terms up on the Central Regional Board of Education this year.

One contest will be for the Ocean Gate seat, currently held by Francis L. Clayton. Clayton announced at a recent board meeting he would not seek re-election to a third term because of health problems. Michael Passeri, Red Bank Avenue, is challenging Stephanie Jensen, East Averne Avenue.

Incumbent Frances Little, Franklin Avenue, is running against Michael Graichen, Carteret Avenue, for the Seaside Heights seat.

Tracy Mianulli, 8th Avenue, is running unopposed for the Seaside Park seat. Incumbent Gail Coleman did not file to run for another term.