Evesham sues to keep elementary school open

In an unusual move, Evesham Township announced Monday that it is suing the local school district to halt the planned closing of Evans Elementary School.

"The decision to close Evans was wrong," Mayor Randy Brown told a morning news conference, where he stood surrounded by parents of Evans schoolchildren, township officials, homeowners, home builders, and real estate agents.

In their complaint, filed Monday in Superior Court, the Township Council and planning board assert that the district failed to submit its closing plan to the planning board for review, as required by state law.

Changes to the district's long-range facilities plan are considered part of the township's master plan and subject to planning board review, the suit contends.

School Superintendent John Scavelli later took issue with the township's position, saying school boards are no longer obliged to seek planning board review of their facilities plans, as they once were.

"All of the required consolidation documents have been filed with the [New Jersey Department of Education] and are currently under review," he said.

"We are saddened that the township government would take action that requires spending municipal and school resources which would be better used for our students, residents, and taxpayers," Scavelli said.

About 500 pupils attend Evans, a one-story redbrick building that fronts Route 73 just north of Virtua Marlton Hospital. The school district operates six other elementary and two middle schools. High school students attend Lenape Regional district schools.

On March 17, the school board voted, 6-3, to close Evans for the 2017-18 school year as a cost-saving measure in the face of what it said was the district's steadily declining student enrollment. Scavelli has said the closing would save the district $1.4 million, mostly in the attrition or layoffs of about 25 employees.

The Township Council voted unanimously April 26 to challenge that decision.

Brown said Monday that the district's projection of declining enrollment was dubious in light of the many housing permits the township has granted during the last year.

He also cited concerns of homeowners in neighborhoods that send pupils to Evans that closing it could reduce their home values by as much as 10 percent.

Stuart Platt, an attorney representing Evesham's planning board, said that the district is not obliged to win the board's approval to close Evans, but that its plan must be reviewed.

Township Administrator Tom Czerniecki said the township was taking legal action now because it had a 45-day window in which to challenge the school board's vote.

"Our goal is a discussion with the full board," he said.

doreilly@phillynews.com

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