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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11-16-2004 School Board MinutesMINUTES MAYOR AND COMMON COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN BERNARDINO AND SAN BERNARDINO CITY UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD OF EDUCATION JOINT ADJOURNED REGULAR MEETING NOVEMBER 16, 2004 BOARD OF EDUCATION BUILDING COMMUNITY ROOM 777 NORTH "F" STREET SAN BERNARDINO, CALIFORNIA This is the time and place set for a joint adjourned regular meeting of the Mayor and Common Council of the City of San Bernardino and the San Bernardino City Unified School District Board of Education from the joint regular meeting of the Mayor and Common Council and Community Development Commission held on Monday, November 15, 2004, at 1:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers of City Hall, 300 North "D" Street, San Bernardino, California. The City Clerk has caused to be posted the order of adjournment of said meeting held on Monday, November 15, 2004, and has on file in the Office of the City Clerk an affidavit of said posting together with a copy of said order which was posted at 9 a.m., Tuesday, November 16, 2004, on the City Hall breezeway bulletin board. The joint adjourned regular meeting of the Mayor and Common Council of the City of San Bernardino and the San Bernardino City Unified School District Board of Education was called to order by School Board President Elsa Valdez at 5:30 p.m., Tuesday, November 16, 2004, in the Community Room, Board of Education Building, 777 North "F" Street, San Bernardino, California. City of San Bernardino Roll Call Roll call was taken by City Clerk Rachel Clark with the following being present: Mayor Judith Valles; Council Members Esther Estrada, Susan Longville, Neil Derry, Chas Kelley, Rikke Johnson, Wendy McCammack. Absent: Council Member Gordon McGinnis. Also present: City Attorney James Penman; City Clerk Rachel Clark; City Administrator Fred Wilson; Economic Development Agency Deputy Director Maggie Pacheco; Marketing/Public Affairs Director June Durr; Assistants to the Mayor Nick Gonzalez, Wallace Green, and Peggi Hazlett; Assistant to the City Administrator Lori Sassoon; 11/16/2004 Deputy City Attorneys Jolena Barnes and Michael Reiter; and Deputy City Clerk Linda Sutherland. Board of Education Roll Call Roll call was taken by Administrative Assistant Owens with the following being present: President Elsa Valdez; Vice President Teresa Parra; Board Members Marlin Brown, Antonio Dupre, Judi Penman, Lynda Savage, and Danny Tillman; Superintendent Arturo Delgado; Deputy Superintendent Judy White; Assistant Superintendents Mel Albiso, Narciso Cardona, Dayton Gilleland, Mohammad Islam, Yolanda Ortega, John Peukert, Paul Shirk, and Harold Vollkommer; and Superintendent's Assistant Mary Beth Gosnell; Facilities Director Mike Perez; and Administrative Assistant Jennifer Owens. Pledge of Allegiance The meeting was opened with the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America. 1. Discussion of San Bernardino Unified School District building plans — Lincoln School north project — Verdemont area school site — other future sites Superintendent Arturo Delgado stated that it had been brought to the Board's attention that there were concerns regarding some of their building projects, particularly, the Lincoln II School Project. Dr. Delgado stated that the purpose of the meeting was to present an overview of how they arrived at their school facility needs. Mayor Valles stated that she recognized that it is critical that the City and the School District work together with the construction of homes and the expansion of schools. Facilities Director Mike Perez made a PowerPoint presentation that outlined Enrollment & Capacity Requirements; Current Projects; Site Selection Process; Elementary, Middle and High School Populations; K-12 Density; and Proposed New School Sites. Mr. Perez stated that the State has identified Lincoln Elementary as a critically overcrowded school site that is eligible for special conditions. He stated that the School District's plan is to improve the school academically and provide the children with a better environment as quickly as possible. Council Member Estrada asked if there was a way the school district could commit the funds so the State could not raid its coffers. Mr. Perez stated that several years ago the State funded a number of the district's projects at 100 percent, when normally they require that districts share the costs 2 11/16/2004 50150 or 60/40; but he added that they have again been qualified as a hardship district. He explained that the $50 million in local bonds has already been spent on building a number of schools and on modernization, and he noted that they had received an additional $50 million from the State. Mr. Perez stated that a cap was placed on the $140 million bond and they cannot overburden the taxpayer, so they have maximized that cap and they cannot go any further. He stated that they have only issued $45 million of the $140 million, but they have a plan over the next five to ten years to issue it as it becomes eligible and as the community assessed value increases. Mr. Perez stated that the money is locked in, but they don't have it all yet. He stated that the State has $7 billion right now for new construction, but it is on a first come, first served basis, and if they don't submit a fully approved set of plans and a school site soon, the State could change the rules and take the money away from them. Mr. Perez stated that the State wants the district to follow building education code requirements and go through the complete process including appraisal and soil testing, and they want to make sure all impacts are fully mitigated under California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) guidelines. He stated that when all that information is ready they will go to Sacramento and get in line for money, but if they don't act quickly the district could lose its State funding priority place in line. Council Member Longville stated that in identifying sites for Lincoln School the school district obviously feels that they have taken the first step forward in a significant planning process by going to the State for funding without any discussion of the potential impacts. She felt that it may be too late and they are now in the uncomfortable position of requesting that the school district look at the impacts of the site selection that was made in the absence of guidelines. In the case of Lincoln School, she stated that she is hearing that they do not want to move the students and are considering relocating the commercial businesses on Baseline. Council Member McCammack stated that Dr. Delgado had indicated earlier that one of the first points of the decision making process was with overcrowded schools, and the second point was to locate schools where the children live. She stated that one of her concerns was with busing, which contradicted Dr. Delgado's statement that schools are being built where the kids are, and it appeared to her that if they really wanted to address the issue of overcrowded schools they would do it on a City-wide basis. Ms. McCammack stated that she was confused as to the weight of the issues and asked if that meant that her constituents were going to have to continue to deal with no infrastructure, a huge amount of buses and real traffic and safety issues on a daily basis. Ms. McCammack stated that she felt the Emmerton expansion would have been the cheapest, easiest, and the most perfectly suited for their needs, but that area wasn't necessarily where the largest number of kids were, but it was the smartest thing for the school district to do because their money probably went twice as far as it would 3 11/16/2004 have gone, or it will go, for instance, if it goes to Lincoln. Ms. McCammack stated that as a whole the Council was not involved, but as a whole they are now having to live with the decisions. School Board Vice President Teresa Parra stated that the school district is not sure whether they are going to continue the funding for busing so they're having to identify where the kids are coming from into an area where there is no need. She stated that they want to get the kids back to the neighborhood schools where they are so they don't have to continue to bus them across town. Council Member Kelley stated that he understood what it was like to have to get back in line for funding, his colleagues concerns, and the fact that they must do something at Lincoln. Mr. Kelley asked how much of the developer's fees would go to the school site if they do have to get back in line for funding. Mr. Perez stated that all developer fee money has to go to school projects. He stated that right now it was being used on the purchase and installation of portables, so there was no available developer fee money. Council Member Derry stated that he understood the need to build schools where the kids are because buses are heavy vehicles and they create a great deal of wear and tear on the City's roads. Council Member Johnson inquired as to how much money the school district would lose if they were to lose their place in line. Mr. Perez stated that they would lose approximately $14 million in State funding if they were to lose their place in line. Mr. Tillman stated that the district is still under Federal mandate and receives about $16 million per year for desegregation and integration, which allows them to provide transportation and offer special programs and extended day care. He stated that the district tries to avoid eminent domain and they have hired a separate attorney to oversee their relocation assistance program. Mr. Tillman stated that there are no development fees in the City, but they are seeing an increase in population because existing households now have more children. He stated that the local residents passed a bond that enabled the district to get matching funds and their goal is to build as many schools as they can with the help of the City that will fit into the City's Master Plan. Mr. Perez stated that the timeline for all schools is one year of planning and two years of construction. He stated that they are currently in the first six months of the planning phase, which is when they receive money from the State. He stated that there is a three-month process whereby they select their consultants and get the team ready to go. 4 11/16/2004 Mayor Valles stated that the whole process was still evolving and she did not want to throw a monkey wrench into the plans, but she indicated that she wanted an opportunity to discuss this matter further with the School Board and the City Council. She stated that she is concerned with the timeline and does not want the school district to lose its place in line and the opportunity to build schools where they are really needed. Ms. Parra agreed with Mayor Valles on the importance of continuing a strong dialogue and she stated that her main concern was having to displace students. Dr. Brown stated that he agreed with the Mayor that they have some major challenges, but they also have some real opportunities to improve the City with the judicious use of school placements, but he added that it is critical that they do not lose their funding. Ms. Longville stated that the families that live in the Lincoln area that she represents are at a disadvantage because the School Board came to the City and shared proposed sites with the Mayor, but it never got down to the Council level and it never got down to the community level. Ms. Longville stated that the proposed site currently contains a police substation and Smart and Final is one of the most generous contributors to charitable events in the City and is the number one site in the City where they have free dump days. She stated that the businesses that would be impacted generate $6.6 million annually in sales tax, of which the City receives $66,000. Mayor Valles stated that the landlords of that area live in Los Angeles and they have not invested anything in the City. She disagreed with Ms. Longville by stating that the tax increment generated is only about $4,000. Ms. Longville explained what happens to a community when you take away the last remaining full service grocery store in an area and stated that they need to look at the quality of life in the areas where the children and the schools exist. She stated that she felt uncomfortable because information was not shared with the community she represents. She stated that a petition was being circulated by residents in the Baseline community opposed to the San Bernardino Unified School District's plan to demolish the existing businesses and the police substation on the north side of Baseline Avenue, west of Arrowhead Avenue, to build a new elementary school because they believe it will make survival in the neighborhood even more difficult than it already is. Ms. Longville stated that the City of San Bernardino cannot afford to hire the additional police officers it needs to staff the new beat plan and destroying successful local businesses that generate revenue for the City that pays for police protection and other City services will hurt the residents of the community and the City as a whole. She indicated that she does support building more classrooms in the Baseline Avenue area to reduce overcrowding at Lincoln School, and added that the Baseline Avenue 5 11/ 16/2004 plan will sacrifice the long-term quality of life in the neighborhood and will result in the loss of City revenues. She urged the School District to abandon the plan and find a more suitable location. Ms. McCammack stated that the School District needs to share its five- and ten-year housing plans with the Mayor and all the Council Members and suggested that it should be included in the City's General Plan update. She felt that busing would be cheaper than spending $30 million on schools in places where they are not wanted. Ms. McCammack advised that the City could not afford to lose another dime in sales taxable or property taxable revenue and she stated that if the school district wants the City's help building and moving roads, fixing sidewalks, adding street lights and helping fund security guards they should figure out a way to subsidize the City for its losses. Ms. McCammack stated that every year the City collects development fees for school districts and she indicated that she knew for a fact that less than one year ago the school district received a check for $400,000, not from houses being built, but from commercial development. Mr. Tillman stated that the amount of money they get from development fees is nothing compared to their needs. Dr. Delgado stated that each year by law the school district performs a study of what it costs to build schools, and that study shows that developers do not pay 100 percent. Ms. McCammack stated that the school district was not accurate when they said that there were no more development fees. Mr. Tillman stated that it is not new development that is driving the population, but it is the increase of students per household. Council Member Estrada asked if it was too late to consider another site for Lincoln School. Dr. Delgado stated that they have not yet crossed the point of no return, but the real issue is the cost. He stated that they have a school that is already overcrowded and in order to change their plans now it would take 1 to 11/2 years to catch up to where they are now. He stated that it is just a matter of time before someone figures out how to take the money, and that someone would be Los Angeles. Council Member Kelley stated that schools are more important than affordable housing to most parents and that developers and residents are looking to the Verdemont area. He stated that the City cannot afford to lose the opportunity of having new residents move to other communities where you see a lot of turn -key schools being built. Mr. Kelley stated that the City needs to identify a school site 6 11/16/2004 quickly because land is disappearing, and he indicated that he wanted to hear a commitment from the School Board and the City that they would meet in the future and address the need for a new elementary school in the Verdemont Area. Mr. Kelley added that the City's General Plan update now included a floating school site. Dr. Delgado stated that in the past the City has granted development rights to the individuals there whether it be for housing or commercial development and there has not been a site identified as an institutional public use. President Elsa Valdez stated that it was not their intent to take away business from San Bernardino, but to take care of the hundreds of children that are currently in overcrowded schools with the least amount of disruption. Council Member Longville stated that when they look at identifying potential sites, the school district needs some guidelines that look at the impacts of their decisions on the long term viability and sustainability of those communities and the quality of life. Mrs. Longville stated that nobody was addressing the fact that they would leave a whole area without a full -service grocery store and nobody was addressing the fact that there isn't another site on Baseline Avenue with the parking in front for a police substation. Pam Dart, representative for the Baseline Shopping Center, spoke positively about the shopping center and referred to it as a diamond in the rough. She stated that she did not think it was a good location for a school. Reverend Beaman stated that crime was very high in the Baseline area and he did not believe many of the residents in that area did their shopping at Smart and Final. He stated that there is always an undesirable element hanging around there and he believed the City could find them a new, more profitable location. He felt that a school would be good for the area and he added that Fiesta Market would soon be opening at 9' and Waterman. No action was taken. 2. Other Matters No other matters were discussed. 7 11/16/2004 3. Adjournment At 8 p.m., the meeting adjourned. The next joint regular meeting of the Mayor and Common Council/Community Development Commission is scheduled for 1:30 p.m., Monday, December 6, 2004, in the Council Chambers of City Hall, 300 North "D" Street, San Bernardino, California. No. of Items: 3 No. of Hours: 2.5 RACHEL G. CLARK City Clerk By �.rt�✓n wOnIGQi►cQ Linda Sutherland Deputy City Clerk 8 11/16/2004