6 Thursday, November 21, 2013
Coastal View News • Carpinteria, California
school notes
Santa to visit Kinderkirk Panfest/Holiday Festival
Flapjacks hot off the griddle will be the star of the show when Kinderkirk hosts its annual Panfest on Dec. 7 starting at 8 a.m. at Carpinteria Community Church, 1111 Vallecito Road. From 9 a.m. until 2 p.m., the church lawn will transform into a Holiday Festival of handcrafted goods, crafts, bouncers and direct requests for Christmas wishes from Santa Claus. Raffle prizes, including a $500 grand prize, will be available for $2 donations.
Local representatives visit CHS ag classes
State Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson and Assemblyman Das Williams visited Carpinteria High School Agricultural Sciences students last week to take a tour of the student farm, horticulture unit and classrooms. The elected officials accepted an invitation from students who then spoke about the importance of the local program. Students asked the representatives to convince Governor Jerry Brown to change his mind about cutting the Agriculture Education Incentive Grant program. CHS FFA students are among the many beneficiaries of this program, through which they gain opportunities to develop leadership and career skills, according to the students.
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SUBMITTED PHOTO
State Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson visited the highly decorated Carpinteria High School FFA program last week. Pictured with Jackson are students, from left, Alleea Griffin, Christian Romero, Iralda Maya, Estephany Zapata, Edith Cardoso, Kayla Meza, Megan Garcia and Molly Miller.
SCHOOL BOARD: Continued from page 1
third is improvement to parking and circulation. Committee member Patty Buchmiller commented on the need for improved drop-off and pick-up areas in terms of safety. “If you’ve ever looked at any of the parking lots, you know it’s a miracle we haven’t lost a child,” she said. As the top priority, technology upgrades represent a significant portion of the final price. All of the district’s schools were built prior to 1970, so classrooms are ill equipped for contemporary electrical demand. “The biggest issue is the least sexy, which is enough outlets to power computers and charge wireless devices,” said Superintendent Paul Cordeiro. The Canalino/Carpinteria Family School campuses are slated for $1.1 million in electrical upgrades in the draft plan, and other campuses have similar price tags attached to electrical system overhauls. Construction of a new Summerland School is estimated to cost $6 million, while Carpinteria High School’s $20 million proposal would cover a new science wing, a small theater and lecture hall and an upgraded gymnasium, in addition to other improvements. At Canalino and Carpinteria Family School, $4.8 million could replace aging portables with a 14-classroom wing. The Aliso plan includes a $2 million option to replace portables with a new wing, and Carpinteria Middle School’s portables could be new classrooms for about $3.2 million. Alternatively, portables could be reroofed for much less than replacement. At Cordeiro’s suggestion, the board agreed that a consultant with technical expertise should be hired to thoroughly assess the condition of the district’s existing portables and provide input on their lifespan. Assistant Superintendent Cindy Abbott told the board that many of the portables were already old when purchased by the district decades ago. Other major projects at CMS include a $1.1 million remodel to the kitchen
and home economics classroom, as well as a $1.8 million upgrade to the school’s former gym, which now serves as a multipurpose room and stage. Getting voters on board for high-dollar improvements to CMS may be difficult, boardmembers noted, because the bond election of the 1990s focused on a remodel to that campus. Though that school was remodeled in 1995, parts of the existing structure were left untouched and are now in need of modernization. Necessary Americans with Disabilities Act improvements and replacement of existing lights with energy efficient ones will cost millions district-wide. The draft plan also includes the installation of solar panels at a cost of $2.2 million. Over the past 10 years, the district has
put just 0.31 to 1.12 percent of its annual operating budget toward deferred maintenance. Board President Andy Sheaffer asked administrators for greater detail on the longevity of “bandaid” facilities fixes that have stood in place of long-term solutions. “Eventually our deferrals are going to catch up with us,” he said. “They already are,” Abbott responded. Cordeiro highlighted the difficulty of passing a general obligation bond, which requires greater than two-thirds voter approval, in a district where the campuses appear to be in good shape to passersby. “They need to come walk across our nice lawns, past our nice landscaping and look inside those rooms,” he said. District administrators estimate that about $9 million could be drummed up before approaching voters. The sale of the district’s Toro Canyon property put $2.3 million in the bank for capital improve-
ments, as dictated by state law. Surplus district properties on Bailard Avenue in Carpinteria and Whitney Avenue in Summerland were last appraised at the height of the housing market at just under $4 million. CUSD also has $680,000 available in developers fees and $600,000 in Proposition 39 funding for increasing energy efficiency. Members of the Superintendent’s Facilities Committee were Kathy Abney, Don Benson, Patty Buchmiller, Beth Cox, John Franklin, Ed George, Ahmed Jahadhmy, Rich Medel and Mike Modugno. Though the board suggested more work be done to ascertain the current state of facilities in order to narrow down the list, boardmembers lauded the committee members for their hard work. “These people were amazing, all of them,” emphasized Abbott. “They brought something to the table that we really needed.”
$60 million, school by school
Draft Facilities Master Plan proposes district-wide upgrades Facility
Total
Top Priorities
Aliso School
$7.152 million
Redo administrative office area, teachers lounge and add small group meting rooms
Canalino School
$9.338 million
Replace portables
Summerland School
$6.0 million
ADA improvements
Carpinteria Middle School
$8.944 million
Upgrade of multipurpose room (old gym), Upgrade food services
Carpinteria High School
$20.359 million
New science wing, Upgrade gym facilities, Add theater/lecture hall
Rincon/Foothill high schools
$191,000
Provide space for small meeting rooms
Carpinteria Children’s Project at Main
$5.061 million
ADA improvements
District Office
$353,000
ADA improvements