Hello @
Pilot1226 from another local.
I am in the same boat but with older kids. Mine are teenagers.
When our kids were in your age group my wife and I got WRXs. This opened the door for either of us to get the kids in a pinch if we needed.
If you have a four seater then you should be fine. As a parent it sounds like you truly have to figure out where is the furthest the kids will be from home where they might have to be in the back of the BRZ.
Right now my kids are pretty close to home.
I daily a 2010 tacoma crew cab. My wife has a civic sedan.
So I could take the miata or brz to work and rush home to get the kids if needed.
If you could live with the fast dip home and get to the kids then the car could be made to work. It is all about the discomfort vs fun (and oh it is fun).
There must be BRZ/86 meets in NJ that you could head out to, to see what is going on with the cars.
If you want to check out mine give me a PM.
I will tell you that after a 10min drive we were sold on the car. Dealerships let you test drive without a salesman so you can put the car thru a slight pace. I bought the car we test drove as it was still in plastic wrap and had 8 miles on the clock.
Also food for thought. I walked into my local subaru dealer and got a price for a car on their lot 4 years ago. Adulting kept me from purchasing one for all that time. I am glad I waited.