Jackson Taxpayers to Foot Appeal over Orthodox School

Jackson Zoning Board Attorney Sean Gertner said an appeal filed in state Superior Court in Toms River seeking to overturn a decision in June to deny the building of an all-girls Orthodox Jewish High School on a 7.5 acre tract on Cross Street is "disappointing."

"The decision was rendered after months of testimony, evidence from both sides, and the Board applied the facts to the law fairly and impartially," said Gertner.

The Board voted against the proposal, citing concerns about traffic and a threat to nearby water wells. There are no connections to the Jackson Municipal Utilities Authority water supply in that neighborhood.

Rabbi Ephraim Birnbaum was seeking a variance to construct the two-story, 400-student school in a residential neighborhood consisting of mostly one-acre lost, according to the APP.com

Raymond Shea, the attorney representing the school and Birnbaum, argued during testimony over the summer that denying the application would violate sections of the federal Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act, protecting practices of religious groups and prisoners.

"We fully expect to be vindicated of with regards to those counts," said Gertner. "It is a shame that after such a lengthy, fair hearing, with a fair determination, that the Plaintiffs here have determined to further expend taxpayer dollars by filing this complaint," he added.

It's unknown when the appeal will be heard.