A new $19.6 million elementary school being built to replace one that burned down two years ago is starting to take shape.
MyCentralJersey.com reports the structure will open this fall as the new James Monroe Elementary School. It's on target to be completed in August before it welcomes more than 450 students in for their first day of class.
Edison School Superintendent Richard O'Malley says the size of the building is notable. The former school stood at one-story and was about 40,000 square feet. This building is two-stories and has about 62,000 square feet.
The former building was destroyed when a fire ripped through it on March 22, 2014. Investigators say the fire started after a cigarette that a janitor had smoked in the school ignited in a trash can.
