Resident: Redistricting is Long Overdue

Although discussion about was postponed until more board members are present at the Sept. 27 meeting, one resident said at the Sept. 13 meeting that she would support redistricting as long as it means not closing schools.

Bridgewater resident Penny Wolf said she believes redistricting in Bridgewater is long overdue. But, she said, she does not believe it would be a good idea to close a school, as was discussed about 15 years ago.

“As you drive around Bridgewater, lots of houses are up for sale and Milltown is a transient center,” she said. “I think we will have an upsurge of kids soon, and we don’t want to have another referendum where we have to build another school.”

Wolf said she believes the distribution of students is even lopsided in , as opposed to .

“We need to think about long term,” she said. “There are a lot of houses for sale and I don’t think they will be sold to retirement-age families, but to young families.”

And board of education members said they discussed different options for redistricting in committee meetings, but no decisions were made.

“We had a lively discussion about what we thought we would be willing to consider and what we wouldn’t, but no recommendations or conclusions were found,” board of education member Lynne Hurley said.

And in the facilities committee, they discussed declining enrollment, with recommendations from the district as to how to move forward for planning purposes.

“The recommendation to us was that the board first select acceptable options that are then given to a task force for strengths and weaknesses,” said board of education vice president Patrick Breslin. “Then the board can review those and invite the public to participate before making a final decision.”

Discussions about redistricting are expected to continue at the Sept. 27 board of education meeting.