7-10-08 We can find no record of any school district failing four bonds out of four in a row. Now those idiots want to waste $30-$40,000 of educational money to make it five out of five failures. While smaller, (about $13 Million) this bond is still plagued with the same problems that caused the community to vote no, four times in a row. The new plan is for the maximum bond they can get with a $125 new tax per year on a $500,000 assessed valuation home. Even the $125 a year tax is not guaranteed as a maximum because if the bonding company chooses a higher growth rate for the community and the real growth rate is less than that, the assessment can rise to much more.
1. It is a failure because the State will run out of matching funds this year and there is no state bond election planned until at least 2010. This means our community doesn't get any matching money from the state. The idiots could include a limitation that they would not issue the bonds unless there were matching funds available, but the Brighter Group, are pretty dim.
2. As usual, all the money is going to "improve" Vasquez High; with not one cent to improve, modernized or repair Agua Dulce, High Desert, or Meadowlark. And not even a thought was given to reopening Acton school. The fact is that Meadowlark still lacks bathrooms . It does not meet the state minimum required number for the number of students. High Desert's bathrooms are located too far from classrooms to be legally acceptable and Agua Dulce's bathrooms are only functional because of heroic repairs by the staff and community. The High Desert gym is in desperate need of maintenance as are the other two schools.
We know that Vasquez High is an educational failure and makes a laughing stock out of our community and we all agree something needs to be done. But floating a fifth bond try after four failures in a row is just plain stupid.
I would supported a bond, maybe even the $13 million, if the money was spread out to fix all of our existing schools including a cafeteria-multipurpose room, permanent bathrooms, and a library for Vasquez. But to waste the money on a gym in what amounts to a documented educational failure is not acceptable and I'm sure the community will vote no for the fifth time, just as it has voted no on the previous four bonds.
To get on the ballot requires four yes votes. The school board currently has a no vote by Ron Bird and yes by Distaso, Layton and Rocha. On the 31st when Leona Sextant returns, she will have the deciding vote. If she votes yes here's another $40,000 wasted or if she votes no the $40,000 can be spent on improving the educational quality of Vasquez and fixing the other schools.
Maybe smarter minds will get together and change the bond to improve all the schools. The proposed tax is only three tank full's of gasoline at current prices per year and if it is spent for something that would help all the kids we might get 55% of the community to support it. But we cannot trust the Brighter group's plan, with all bond funds to Vasquez to build a gym.