The Central Planning Board voted 6-1 to approve the six-story NorthStar Academy building as hundreds of residents looked on
NEWARK - The city's Central Planning Board approved plans for a new NorthStar Academy charter school on a former Star-Ledger property before a packed City Hall chamber Monday night.
The board passed the proposal 6-1, with Chairman Wayne Richardson and Jacqueline Ceola abstaining from the vote.
The only nay came from Alex Jurgelevicius, who called for an "impact review" to help weigh arguments that the new building might have an adverse effect on the city's public schools.
"Until all Newark students can be given the same opportunities for a wonderful, wonderful building....it seems that until that can happen, it's going to be no," he said.
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Hundreds of NorthStar students, teachers and other supporters cheered when the decision came down more than three hours after the meeting began.
Representatives of the schools' parent organization, New York-based Uncommon Schools, presented their plans for the currently vacant lot and adjacent parking garage at the corner of Court Street and University Street in the Central Ward.
Ahkilah Johnson, the network's director of real estate facilities, stressed that the six-story school would serve students in grades K-12, and would serve as a replacement for many of those in its 11 current facilities in Newark, rather than an expansion.
She also cited the property's central location and proximity to various mass transit options, providing convenience for students and employees alike.
"This site is a godsend," she said.
But architects and lawyers eventually gave way to dozens of speakers who, despite pleas to the board from Uncommon Schools attorney Glenn Pantel, launched into a full-fledged debate over the perceived merits and pitfalls of charter schools.
Residents such as Denise Cole argued against the project, saying it would unnecessarily siphon precious dollars from the city's neighborhood schools, which have been steadily losing students and school space to charters, which many blame for a persistent budget deficit.
"This is not about charters doing more with less, because charters are funded by hedge funds," she said. "I'm financially inclined here, and it don't add up."
The decision drew mixed reaction from public officials. Central Ward Councilwoman Gayle Chaneyfield Jenkins issued a statement shortly after it was delivered, praising the board for "putting the children and families of Newark first over politics."
"By approving North Star's application tonight to build a new public school on a vacant parking lot, the members of this board courageously took a stand for the children of this city, who can look forward to a bright future," she said.
Municipal Council President Mildred Crump spoke against the plan at a rally organized by the Newark Teachers Union prior to the hearing.
During a brief speech, she relayed a story about the stark inequities she was confronted with when entering a longtime public school that now shares space with a charter. On one side, she said she found carpeting, air conditioning, up-to-date technology and books, while the other struggled to round up the most basic of resources.
"The difference is unbelievable," she said. "It's time for it to end."
Newark School Advisory Board members Dashay Carter and Marques-Aquil Lewis, who had opposed the plan, declined to comment after the meeting, saying only that it was "disappointing."
Johnson said work on the school, which sits across Court Street from the Star-Ledger's longtime headquarters, is expected to begin early next year and open sometime in 2018.
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