Conejo Schools Place Record Bond on Ballot

Convinced that local schools need the kind of cash only a bond can provide, Conejo Valley school district trustees voted unanimously Friday to place a record $97-million bond measure on the November ballot.

If passed by voters, it would be the largest bond measure in Ventura County history, eclipsing the $81-million bond approved by Ventura residents early this month.

The money would be used to repair, remodel, rewire and air condition the district’s aging schools, many at least 30 years old. Trustees said that if the district didn’t issue a bond and held off on needed work, the cost would only increase.

“The longer we take to do something like this, the harder it will be,” said school board President Mildred Lynch.

Now the bond’s backers need to convince voters that building repair is worth extra taxes. The measure would cost property owners about $25 for every $100,000 of a home’s assessed value, Assistant Supt. Gary Mortimer said.

Although some trustees said Friday they are nervous about pursuing such a big bond, the recent success of similar measures in the Ventura, Oxnard and Ocean View districts gave them hope.

“The climate seems to be very favorable,” trustee Richard Newman said. “The public seems very disposed to funding schools.”

Some Thousand Oaks parents are already mobilizing behind the measure and will meet next week to discuss strategy, said Pat Phelps, outgoing president of Westlake High School’s PTA.

“I don’t think it will be a tough sell,” Phelps said.

Even in the prosperous Conejo Valley--where students boast some of the highest test scores in Ventura County and local schools enjoy a strong reputation--school buildings need work. Roofs need to be replaced, bathrooms fixed, floors re-tiled.

“If there’s any doubt in anyone’s mind about renovating the schools, go look at the schools,” said trustee Dorothy Beaubien.

Elementary schools will also need extra space if they hope to expand the popular class-size reduction program to additional grades.

Phelps said that many parents can see the necessity of a bond. But she noted that efforts to pass the measure are just beginning, and opponents may yet appear.

“Right now, it’s early, and you’re only getting the positive support,” she said. “You haven’t heard the negative comments yet.”

The measure will need substantial support to pass. Approval requires a two-thirds majority of those voting. Oxnard’s recent $57-million bond measure cleared that hurdle by a mere 100 votes.

Jere Robings, president of the Ventura County Alliance of Taxpayers, noted that the Ocean View, Oxnard and Ventura bond measures all passed during a June election, traditionally a time of low voter turnout. Since backers of a ballot measure are more likely to show up than other voters during a spring election, they have an advantage, Robings said.

In November, that advantage disappears.

“It may not be the best timing,” Robings said. His group has not yet taken a position on the Conejo bond.