EDITORIAL

The time has come for a change in the Ocean View School District. All

the signs are there -- community members feeling left out of board

decisions, residents responding to school problems with vandalism and two

new trustees, one of whom is an ardent critic, elected to the school

board.

As we see it, Supt. James Tarwater needs to answer this clarion call

right away.

The old ways the school district and school board have handled issues

that adversely affect the students and residents of the community simply

are not working.

The first problem is clearly lack of communication between the school

district and the community.

It would seem the debacle and fight that erupted after the district

decided to sell off the closed Crest View school site to a Wal-Mart

department store would have been enough.

That action resulted in deep scars and embitterness within the Crest

View community and ultimately an ugly election campaign that dragged the

whole city into the mire.

Despite that turmoil, district officials continue to anger community

members.

Take for example, the construction of gymnasiums/auditoriums at the

district’s four middle schools. The district, under supervision of

Tarwater, started making plans to construct these facilities without any

input from the community.

This caused an uproar especially among those who live closest to the

middle schools. It took several months for the district to realize

residents should and will have a say in how these auditoriums are

constucted.

Just last week, community advisory committees were formed -- its

members chosen by fellow residents -- to work with the district on these

facilities.

Another problem is the noise and traffic disruptions associated with

the AYSO soccer fields on the former Meadow View Elementary School in

Huntington Beach.

Two months ago, soccer coaches found a large patch of dead, yellow

grass and soil where there had been more than 1 1/2 acres of a plush,

green, grassy soccer field. Most of the playing space was unusable.

While the fingers rightly pointed to residents in the area as the

cause of the destruction, it might have never happened if it weren’t for

the failure of the district, the owner of the property, to better

communicate with the residents in the area and the AYSO.

Now, the Huntington Beach Community Services Commission has stepped in

and formed an ad hoc committee to settle the ongoing dispute.

The panel, which includes commission members, Ocean View School

District officials, AYSO representatives and homeowners, has initially

requested additional police patrols of the area to help control traffic

and parking violations.

Neighbors have complained increased noise, speeding cars, congested

parking and blocked driveways on the weekends during game time.

Enough is enough.

It’s time the district and Tarwater put and end to this unneeded

friction and animosity. It’s time the district includes the community in

its plans and stops making decisions in a vacuum.

It may not be that hard to fix. Perhaps it’s as easy as hiring a

full-time community liaison, someone who can not only be the voice of the

district but the ears as well.

Either way, though, it has to be fixed because it seems that whenever

the community speaks up, it’s taking a long time for the district to

hear.