District plans to accommodate more students

The Mountain View Los Altos Union High School District (MVLAUHSD) has proposed a $45 million “green” general obligation bond to make environmentally friendly renovations in anticipation for an increase of students in the next several years.

The district also collected polling data via a telephone survey among district voters that indicated that the bond would receive a 55 percent approval needed to pass.

The bond money would go toward improving facilities and preventing overcrowding.

It would add science labs, classrooms and equipment to ensure that the high schools are up-to-date and allow for growing enrollment. It would also go toward building new classrooms fit to modern fire and earthquake safety standards, as well as updating safety systems in the current high school facilities.

Other renovations, which district trustees began discussing last year, would allow MVLA schools to become more energy efficient in order to boost long-term sustainability.

Proposed items include solar panels, energy-efficient swimming pools, alternative lighting options, additional classrooms, more windows in current classrooms and upgrades to the air-conditioning and heating systems.

If the bond proposal passes, renovations will probably begin in the summer of 2011, beginning with the installation of solar panels at LAHS. According to district officials, the bond measure will likely be on the June 2010 ballot.

The language of the measure would request the extension of the 1995 bond payment term without increasing the tax rate, according to district officials. The 1995 bond consisted of $58.5 million which funded new classrooms, library facilities, theaters and other construction projects on both high school campuses.

The effect of the additional debt would extend the term by five years but hold the annual cost constant.

“Taxpayers would see no difference in what they already pay for taxes,” Superintendent Dr. Barry Groves said.

As a byproduct of updating facilities and funding energy-efficient projects with the bond money, the district estimates a savings of approximately $400,000 to $500,000 each year in energy costs, decreasing them by up to 75 percent while increasing efficiency and sustainability.

The district would qualify for millions of dollars in state matching funds and federal stimulus programs. According to Groves, money saved from energy costs can be put back into teaching and educational programs.

English, math, science and other academic programs would be supported through improved classroom technology.

“It’s important that our schools become models for communities in sustainability and energy efficiency,” Groves said.

Aside from the savings, Groves said the new bond is necessary because demographic projections indicate the district could enroll an additional 900 students over the next 10 years. That represents a 25 percent increase, split approximately evenly between the 2 high schools. The district, which currently has 3,695 students, could reach an enrollment of approximately 4,570 students by 2019, said High School Attendance Area (HSAA) demographer Jeanne Gobalet during a presentation to the board last April.

“Eventually we need to look at our facilities and see how we can house all these students,” Groves said. “We really need [the bond] in order to accommodate them.”

Administrators noted that they will not need to change the district’s boundaries to alleviate overcrowding, but do need to add more classrooms for the growing student population.

District-authorized telephone surveys have indicated that there is enough local support for the bond for it to be put on the June 2010 California Primary ballot. Pollsters also asked voters to prioritize potential projects if the additional funds became available. Strongest support was for building science labs and equipment (79 percent approved), ensuring equal facilities (75 percent) and avoiding overcrowding (72 percent).

However, the Mountain View- Whisman Elementary School District is also planning to place a bond measure on an upcoming ballot to pay for upgrades to its facilities, which could be for as much as $192 million. School board officials have expressed concerns that residents might be reluctant to pass both measures especially during the economic downturn. Administrators from both districts have been discussing the two potential measures.

According to Green Team member sophomore Rewa Bush, Groves has already met with the Green Team to discuss sustainability at the school.

“He talked to us about encouraging people to vote yes and spreading the news to the rest of the school regarding planned projects like solar panels,” Rewa said.

Groves mentioned the possibility of the district requesting an extension on the length of the district’s bonds to support the sustainability bond during a Board of Trustees meeting last year. The board must decide by Monday, March 8, whether to include the bond on the June ballot. It may reach out to the community to determine the potential election date they would prefer to vote on the bond issue.