Acupuncture in Roxbury, NJ

ROXBURY, NJ – The Roxbury School District will get about six percent more state aid money this year than it did last year, but the amount will still be more than a million dollars less than the district received in 2023.

Figures released Thursday by the state Department of Education (DOE) show Roxbury is earmarked to receive about $7.3 million in state aid for fiscal year 2026. That will be about $420,000 more than the $6.87 million Roxbury got last year.

The year-to-year aid increase is the second largest among Morris County school districts; only Netcong – slated to get a 6.19 percent bump in state aid – comes above Roxbury in terms of percent increase.

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But that will come as only lukewarm good news, since Roxbury was the second-hardest hit district in the county last year when the DOE slashed the district’s aid by nearly $1.9 million from the prior year, a 21.29 percent reduction.

Speaking at the Feb. 24 meeting of the Roxbury School Board, district Business Administrator Joseph Mondanaro expressed fear about the forthcoming school aid figures, expecting the district might again see a funding cut.

“Last week we received word from the NJDOE that, supposedly, districts throughout the state will not see reductions of more than 3 percent in aid,” he said. “I’m not holding my breath. We know what happened last year: We were anticipating a $200,000 loss in state aid and it ended up being $1.9 million.”

Mondanaro told the board that Roxbury, last year, “got hit with the ultimate trifecta: Household income increased, ratables increased and we had a drop in student enrollment. So, if that happens again, we could definitely see a bigger decrease than 3 percent.”

In a statement released Feb. 24, the state said the new school aid numbers reflect a desire to improve stability in school funding. It said the state was “responding to feedback from school officials and other stakeholders – and delivering on its commitment to review the funding formula to improve predictability and alignment to district needs.”

The funding formula includes provisions to “reduce year-to-year volatility” such as the pounding Roxbury sustained last year. The state said it is doing this by:

“Using multiple years of property valuation and income measures to bring greater stability to the formula’s measure of a community’s capacity to support its education costs;

Ensuring that the formula’s measure of the costs necessary to educate students to the State’s academic standards include mental health and up-to-date school security resources;

Calculating special education aid using special education enrollment, replacing the use of a census-based method; and

Providing a mechanism for additional flexibility in the tax levy growth limitation for some districts.”

ROXBURY, NJ - Take a bite out of cancer! Rox-THON, the Roxbury High School club raising money for pediatric cancer research, is at it again, striving to hit $100,000 in donations this year.

Supported by the Roxbury Education Foundation (REF), the club’s latest initiative is selling delicious homemade cake pops.

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Varieties include chocolate or vanilla and are two for $5. Cake pops can be ordered through the website until Feb. 21.

“Neverland Bake Shoppe has the most yummy cake pops, and the fact they’re helping us raise money for our cause is generous," said Rox-THON President Anuj Vyas. "We know the community is out there to help us reach our goal.”

All proceeds from the bake sale will go to fight pediatric cancer at Goryeb Children’s Hospital at Morristown Medical Center.

Cake pops can be picked up at Roxbury High School on Feb. 26 from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Visit roxthon.org for more details.

Rox-THON is holding two events this year to bring awareness to the broader Roxbury community: Rox-THON and Rox-THON Jr. There is time to register for either event.

There are two sessions for Rox-THON Jr. on Feb 18: Students in grades 1-4 can attend from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. (parent/guardian required to stay), and students in grades 5-7 can attend from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. (drop off okay). For families with students in different grades, older siblings are welcome to attend the first session. Walk-ins are welcome.

“We’re planning a ton of activities for Rox-THON Jr." said Sarah Kein, director of entertainment. “There will be snacks, ice cream, games, music, crafts, prizes, dancing and more.”

Participants should register for the event by Jan. 31, but people will be able to register at the door if plans allow them to attend at the last minute. Participants are asked to fundraise a minimum of $20.

ROXBURY, NJ - Roxbury is asserting its prospective new affordable housing obligation is just 358 units, a figure drastically lower than the 989 units estimated by the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (DCA).

The township council formalized its position in a resolution adopted at Tuesday’s council meeting. The claim is based on a detailed analysis that challenges the DCA's assessment of developable land, particularly at the former Kenvil Works site, often referred to locally as the Hercules property.

The DCA previously calculated Roxbury’s prospective need for affordable housing at 989 units, using a formula that considers regional housing need and a municipality’s land capacity. For the builders of those units to make an adequate profit, they would also have to construct about 4,000 market-value or luxury units, potentially adding more than 12,000 residents to Roxbury's current population of about 23,000, officials said.

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However, township officials contend the DCA's figure is based on a significant overestimation of land suitable for development. Their claim of a 358-unit obligation stems from an in-depth analysis by planner Joanna Slagle.

“The (DCA) analysis relied in part upon outdated, incorrect or inaccurate data including geospatial artifacts or anomalies,” wrote Slagle., who said she applied the same data sources, methodology criteria and formulas relied upon by the DCA, but with a different interpretation of the criteria.

The result: A revised land capacity factor of 1.6%, compared to the state's initial figure of 10.87%. This recalculation is based on the finding that only 79.63 acres in Roxbury actually meet the requirements for inclusion as “developable” under state statutes, not 582 acres as calculated by the DCA.

‘No Housing on Hercules’

The township’s analysis points to the former Hercules Kenvil Works site, a sprawling 1,200-acre area with a long history of explosives manufacturing and accidents, as a prime example of the DCA's flawed calculations. The DCA had counted 372 acres of this land as readily available for residential development; Slagle found only 26 acres, land “outside the remediation area.”

Slagle’s report details that Hercules has a history dating back to 1871, when it began manufacturing dynamite on the land adjacent to Howard Boulevard and Berkshire Valley Road. Over the years, it expanded its operations to produce various propellants and explosives, playing a critical role in war efforts, and resulting in several industrial accidents.

It also had a variety of disposal practices that pre-date current environmental regulations. The report further details the ongoing remediation efforts that have been taking place at the site since 1995, including extensive investigations and soil bioremediation efforts.

The township contends that the site's history, coupled with the ongoing remediation requirements, makes it unsuitable for the dense residential development assumed by the DCA.

Additionally, Slagle said the development of the Stone Water Village development warrants the removal of about 27 acres from the calculation, the development of the Parkview/McNeary site warrants the removal of about four acres.

The report asserts that about 65 acres of land designated in the last round of affordable housing calculations need to be removed from the DCA estimate.

“Additionally, we found 64.49 acres associated with properties dedicated to open space, currently developed with residential or non-residential uses, lands within properties designated for water and wastewater utilities, stowmwater management facilities or with no viable access to the property,” wrote Slagle. “The status and use of these parcels warrant their removal from the Land Capacity Factor.”

Related TAPinto Roxbury coverage:

Going Up? Officials Fear Affordable Housing Rules Will Force High-Rise Apartment Buildings for Roxbury

Roxbury Representatives Stunned by State's New Affordable Housing Recommendations

ROXBURY, NJ – Roxbury Town Hall was bursting with young athletes and proud relatives on Tuesday as the township council honored the Roxbury Jr. Gaels track and football teams for outstanding recent seasons.

The council presented plaques to the players, who were also honored by the state Legislature.

The Jr. Gaels track team, led by Director Robert Casendino, had an impressive showing, with multiple athletes securing league championships and breaking league records. Standout athletes like Olivia Akpan dominated the track, breaking records in both the 100- and 200-meter races for the 13–15-year-old girls' age group. The girls' 9-10-year-old and 13-15-year old 4x100 relay teams also clinched league championships.

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On the gridiron, the Jr. Gaels football teams proved their dominance. The Super Pee Wee (5th grade) team, coached by Greg Bertos, clinched the Morris County Youth Football League Freedom Conference Championship with an impressive 9-1 record. The JV (7th grade) team, under the leadership of Mike Connelly, went undefeated with a 10-0 season, also securing the Freedom Conference Championship title.

“I really appreciate the council for recognizing this program,” said Casendino. “The Lakeland League … is literally one of the largest youth track leagues in America. There are18 teams from Sparta to Cranford, and over 2,500 kids. It’s super competitive.”

Bertos too thanked the council for recognizing the youth athletes.

“We are the first-ever fifth grade Super Pee Wee MCYFL Freedom Conference Champions,” he said. “These kids worked their butts off every single day over at Horseshoe Lake in the summer heat, in the cold in November, in the dark, in the rain, putting the work in. I couldn't be more proud of them. They represented Roxbury in the best way possible.”

During his turn at the microphone, Connelly said that having two youth football teams win championships is a “big thing” for Roxbury. The fact that the JV squad won every game made the victory even more special, he said, commenting, “We worked extremely hard for this.”

The team “pretty much came from the bottom” but gained in stature, coming close to championships in prior years, he said. “We called this the redemption tour,” Connelly added. “We came back, gave everybody our best and we went undefeated, which is something that these guys will always remember, the town will remember. And we want to go for it again. We want to be remembered as one of the best teams in Roxbury youth football.”