JACKSON − The Jackson school district has agreed to sell the Sylvia Rosenauer Elementary School.
In a statement, district spokeswoman Allison Erwin said, “We are pleased to report that we have a fully executed contract for the sale of the Rosenauer Elementary School at the agreed-upon price of $13.1 million. We are scheduled to close on the sale in early June.”
The intended buyer, Bais Yaakov of Jackson, is an arm of the Lakewood-based Bais Faiga School, itself the all-girls’ component of the Lakewood Cheder School.
“We are aware of the information circulating about a lawsuit filed by the prospective buyer regarding their perception of the terms of our agreement. That lawsuit has been withdrawn. Recognizing that real estate transactions are complicated, we are pleased to report that we have come to a full agreement on all terms,” Erwin said.
Sylvia Rosenauer Elementary School
In a lawsuit filed in Ocean County chancery court earlier this month, the would-be buyer alleged that the Jackson school board changed the terms and conditions of the group’s agreement to purchase the 62-year-old school for $13.1 million.
After two sides spent months “discussing the contract” through their attorneys, in late February, the school board “accused (Bais Yaakov) of delaying the execution of the draft contract” and demanded they close on the purchase by March 24.
The school board also shortened the mortgage contingency period to 10 days, despite the original bid specifications allowing for a 60-day contingency period.
Bais Yaakov offered to submit a $655,500 deposit, or 5% of the $13.1 million purchase price, according to the withdrawn complaint. Instead, the school board sent a contract requiring an “initial deposit” of $1.3 million, 10% of the purchase price, and an additional $5.2 million deposit, 40% of the purchase price. Bais Yaakov argued those requirements weren’t included in the bid specifications.
The Asbury Park Press independently confirmed that the original bid requirements, posted on the district website, specified a 60-day contingency period that allowed the board to cancel the deal if the winning bidder hadn’t obtained financing. The only mention of deposit was a 10% bid guarantee, with a maximum $20,000 value, that Bais Yaakov said was included in their bid package.
On March 10, the Jackson school board told Bais Yaakov that it was “going to move in a different direction.”
On March 19, the school board unanimously passed a resolution authorizing district executives to put Rosenauer out to bid again, including to other bidders, or explore alternate uses for the property if a contract wasn’t executed.
On March 28, the district announced an agreement had been reached.
The sale of Rosenauer is meant to fill a budget hole in the 2024-25 school year. The district’s financial problems are multifaceted but can largely be attributed to a revamped school funding formula that has seen its state aid cut nearly in half since 2017 while transportation costs ballooned as more Jackson children attend non-public schools.
Faced with a $13 million budget gap in the 2025-26 school year and a declining public school population, the school board agreed in February to merge its two high school student bodies into one at Jackson Liberty High School while sending seventh- and eighth-graders to what is currently Jackson Memorial High School and fifth- and sixth-graders to Carl W. Goetz Middle School.
Enrollment at Jackson public schools declined by 8% between the 2017-18 and 2023-24 school years, during which the town’s Orthodox Jewish community grew substantially. Orthodox families send their children to private religious schools, most of which are located in neighboring Lakewood.
Under state law, school districts are required to provide transportation to all children within its purview, even if those students attend private schools. If transportation can’t be provided, the district must pay the child’s family $1,177 in aid-in-lieu for each student.
But following an injunction and the resolution of a myriad of discrimination lawsuits against the town, school groups − including Bais Yaakov − and developers have won approval for new school campuses across the town, building campuses for as many as four schools and thousands of students.
Rosenauer likely won’t be the last Jackson school to hit the auction block.
Christa McAuliffe Middle School is slated for closure. The building is expected to be rented or sold, but its fate is still uncertain.
Staff writer Mike Davis contributed to this article.
Charles Daye is the metro reporter for Asbury Park and Neptune, with a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion. @CharlesDayeAPP Contact him: [email protected]
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Jackson School District sells Rosenauer Elementary for $13.1 million
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