VENTURA : School District OKs Bond Measure Study

The Ventura Unified School District will study whether to place a bond measure on the city ballot in a future election to raise money to build new schools and renovate existingones.

School board members voted Tuesday to authorize Supt. Cesare Caldarelli to begin looking for a consultant who would poll residents to gauge the potential success of such a measure.

No amount for the bond has been decided, and a possible date to place the measure on the ballot has not been determined, said Jean Rudolph, administrative assistant for business services. District staff members will make recommendations in those areas based on the consultant’s report, she said.

The last school bond measure on the city ballot, $13 million in 1969, was defeated, Rudolph said.

Thirteen buildings in the 23-school district are more than 50 years old and need renovation, according to district records.

Although two aging schools in western Ventura have been closed because of declining enrollment, student population is growing in eastern Ventura and officials have projected the need there for a new elementary school and a new middle school.

In the face of booming enrollment statewide and shrinking state resources, Ventura school officials said a bond measure may be the only way to provide money to keep schools in repair and to plan for growth.

Statewide, there is a $5-billion backlog in unmet construction needs, and enrollment is expected to grow by 230,000 students a year for the next five years.