Wall Township Businesses Lending Support to Schools Group

A growing number of Wall Township businesses are throwing their support behind a group fighting the .

The group, Save Wall Township Schools, weeks ago began distributing red lawn signs announcing opposition to closure of Wall’s oldest school, which the Board of Education says would save the district $1 million annually.

The signs began popping up in residents’ yards all over town.  But lately they have been appearing at neighborhood businesses, the most visible of which is at the Allaire Road location of a .

The restaurant changed its own sign — normally reserved for announcing specials —on Saturday to support keeping West Belmar School. While it may be the most visible sign of support, it is not alone.

“We’re finding a lot of businesses are as concerned about the possible closure of West Belmar School as we are,’’ said Tom Coyle, a Rosewood Avenue resident and organizer of the Save Wall Schools group. “The more families who choose Wall Township because of its reputation for a consistent educational environment, the better it is for them.’’

Weeks ago when the group introduced the signs with an initial order of 100, Coyle said members were worried that many would go unused. The first order was snatched up in a matter of days, he said.

The group is now going on 500 signs, he said.

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The Wall Township Board of Education is expected to meet tonight at 8 p.m. at Wall Intermediate School, 2801 Allaire Rd.

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At Luke’s Pizzeria at East Hurley Pond Road and New Bedford — across from Wall High School — a red sign is stuck in a 3-foot tall snowdrift in front of the restaurant.

Owner John Frycz said a member of the Save Wall Schools group came in and asked to put the sign there. Frycz said he had no objection, but that he took a neutral position on the issue.

“I figure you put the information out there and you let the people decide,’’ he said.

At Glendola Bicycles on Belmar Boulevard in the Glendola section of town, owner Paul Kerns was less circumspect.

Kearns said he opposes the idea to shutter West Belmar School as a plan for the district to build a new school complex on land the school system owns behind the Allgor-Barkalow Homestead Museum, abutting his business.

“Almost everyone we talk to thinks that closing West Belmar is a bad idea,’’ Coyle said. “The more signs we put out, the more people are asking us if we have more.’’

The Board of Education has examined the closure of West Belmar Elementary School — the town’s oldest school, which also has the smallest population — finding that shuttering it would save the district $1 million a year, mainly in staff reductions and building maintenance costs.

The closure, if it happened, also would not dramatically affect the districts remaining three elementary schools, according to the results of the board’s internal study.

The board also last month enlisted T & M Associates of Middletown to conduct a more thorough study, which is currently ongoing. The study is expected to take at least until the end of the month, board members have said.

Save the Wall Schools’ members, however, have said proposed savings from the closure could be realized through less drastic means and that disbursing students to the remaining three elementary schools would lower the educational experience for all Wall Township students.