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Santa Monica Daily Press TUESDAY, MARCH 24, 2015
Volume 14 Issue 114
PLANNING COMMISSION APPEAL SEE PAGE 5
Staff boost for summer school
Big Blue Bus wants 25-cent fare hike
BY JEFFREY I. GOODMAN
incoming Expo Light Rail, Big Blue Bus wants to boost its service hours by 11 percent. The augmented service will necessitate a fare hike starting in January, BBB officials said in a report to City Council this week. Regular fares would jump a quarter, from $1 to $1.25. Fares for seniors and riders with disabilities wouldn’t be impacted. “BBB’s new proposed cash fare, $1.25, is still one of the lowest in the County as most Municipal Operators are at $1.35 - $1.50, and much lower than Metro’s cash fare of $1.75,” BBB officials told council. “Senior and Disabled fares would be unchanged at $.50 and BBB passes would be increased incrementally.” BBB is projecting a 4-percent increase in passenger revenue with the coming of Expo. Plans for the fare increase and route changes were scheduled to be presented to council on Tuesday, but city officials are asking council to push it back to April 28 because a significant item pertaining to the future of the Santa Monica Airport is scheduled for that night. Last year, BBB eliminated discounted transfer fares and integrated with Los Angeles County’s TAP card system, which allows riders to keep their fare money on a
Daily Press Staff Writer
CITYWIDE Several months remain in the regular school year, but Santa Monica-Malibu district officials have already been lining up plans for upcoming summer sessions. The district is expecting to have more literacy coaches and instructional assistants in summer school classes, officials said during a Board of Education meeting earlier this month. In addition to improving teaching ratios, having additional staff will make it more feasible for students to receive mentoring in oneon-one or small-group settings, said Irene Gonzalez-Castillo and Ellen Edeburn, the district’s directors of curriculum and instruction. The forthcoming increases in summer staffing follow analysis of staff surveys and student test results from last year, when the district hired additional literacy coaches for elementary students. Literacy coaching will be made available at the middle school level this summer, officials said. Outgoing fifth-grade students will attend summer classes at middle school sites to prepare them for their transitions, officials said. Fifth-graders had previously been stationed at elementary schools. Some money for the instructional assistants has come from the Santa Monica-Malibu Education Foundation, officials said. Under recently enacted guidelines, SMMEF oversees fundraising throughout the school district. Board member Jose Escarce noted that summer school, which in recent years has been shortened from six weeks to four weeks, should not provide “cookie-cutter” services. He said instructors should work with students to see how SEE SUMMER PAGE 7
BY DAVID MARK SIMPSON Daily Press Staff Writer
CITYWIDE To keep up with the
File photo
MORE EXPENSIVE RIDE: Big Blue Bus would like regular fares to increase to $1.25 to pay for more service.
card rather than trying to jam rumpled dollar bills into a finicky cash accepter while fellow riders wait to board with rolling eyes. Previously, transfers cost 50 cents. BBB’s grand plan will create more north-south service to complement the east-west light rail. They’re eliminating redundant routes and stops covered by other
transit systems. First- and last-mile connectivity will become a focus. Additionally, BBB promised to keep local passengers in mind — a concern that some council members shared at a meeting about BBB changes in December. Many of the plans are similar to those proposed in December. Initially, the fare increase was proposed for July 2016, but that has
moved up to January in the recent report because the jump in annual revenue service hours was proposed at 9 percent and is now proposed at 11 percent. “Based on feedback from the Council, staff adjusted the plan by revising three of the routes presented to Council in the SEE BBB PAGE 8
Airport activists, leaseholders eye council meeting BY DAVID MARK SIMPSON Daily Press Staff Writer
CITY HALL If you’re hoping to have a seat in the Council Chambers Tuesday night you’re going to want to arrive early. The last time City Council addressed the plans for the future of Santa Monica Airport, a year
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ago, more than 100 members of the public signed up to testify and the chamber reached full capacity, forcing dozens of onlookers to retreat to the lobby, where the meeting was televised. On Tuesday, council will consider what to do when the clock strikes midnight on a 1984 agreement that ties City Halls hands on
certain issues related to the airport. The agreement expires on July 1 and numerous community groups are rallying their troops. Concerned Residents Against Airport Pollution (CRAAP), run by airport opponent Marty Rubin, is calling for a rally outside of City Hall at 6 p.m. “Express what you expect City
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Council to do after the clear mandate by Santa Monica voters!” CRAAP said in a release. This is a reference to a skirmish over airport control that arose when aviation groups hired paid signature gatherers to get a measure on the ballot last year that SEE SMO PAGE 5