Measure A funds put to work at schools

Christine Carrillo

The concrete has been broken, holes have been dug and construction

workers, electricians and contractors have swarmed seven of 28

campuses within the school district as Measure A construction gets

underway.

Four Costa Mesa schools -- Woodland, Whittier and Kaiser

elementaries and Back Bay/Monte Vista High -- and three in Newport

Beach -- Mariners, Newport Heights and Harbor View Elementary, which

broke ground two weeks ago -- have finally stepped out of the world

of planning and into the world of construction, one that costs about

$21 million between them.

“We wanted to get to the ones we felt were the most in need of

repair ... but you have to ask yourself, ‘How many campuses do you

want to have disrupted simultaneously,’” said Tom Holtom, who

oversees Measure A construction for the district. “Our goal is to

have an equitable expenditure of money at all the campuses.”

Voters overwhelmingly approved the $110-million construction bond

in June 2000. The funds have been spread out and applied to the

neediest areas, the school board has noted at every meeting since

construction began.

“I’m glad that we’re publicly talking about the [funds] for

Measure A and where they’re going so we keep people abreast about

it,” said Trustee Serene Stokes, who pushed to make that happen. “I’m

so glad that we’re so far ahead of the game [compared with] other

school districts. ... We’re on our way.”

For nearly three years, plans for school improvements have been in

the works, and now, school officials and Newport-Mesa residents, many

of whom have participated in the site committees that help with

planning, have witnessed the work first-hand.

“As the principal, I’ve got to be like the chief cheerleader for

this,” said Kathryn Hofer, principal at Woodland Elementary.

“Communicating with the teachers and keeping them informed and

communicating with the parents and keeping them informed, along with

the site committee ... it really makes all the difference in the

world.”

While each of the sites pose problems that need to be addressed,

two of the major issues officials have faced are bringing the

bathrooms up to Americans with Disabilities Act regulations and

upgrading the classrooms to support computer technology.

Since many of the campuses were built more than 40 years ago --

none older than Newport Harbor High, which was built about 73 years

ago -- updating the facilities has proven one of the biggest

transformations. Understanding that classrooms must be able to

support a number of computers and electrical equipment, construction

at nearly every site needs more electrical power and electrical

outlets.

Eastbluff and Newport Coast elementary schools are the only two

sites within the district that will not receive any Measure A funds,

since both are up to code and are no more than 6 years old, Holtom

said.

“Things are progressing rather well,” he said. “But I like to

proceed with what I call ‘controlled paranoia.’”

Despite having a gnawing feeling that construction will unearth

unforeseen problems that might cause further delays, Holtom

anticipates that the seven sites under construction may be completed

by December.

The other level-one schools -- Ensign Intermediate and Costa Mesa

and Newport Harbor high schools -- will undergo construction through

priority four of seven.

Priority-one construction addresses health and safety issues at

each site. Construction will then move through priorities two, three

and four, which will include repairs and renovations to pathways,

restrooms, electrical systems, classrooms from ceilings to floors and

even fully equipped portable classrooms for student use in the

interim. Some renovations beyond priority four will be done to the

administrative offices and parking lots. Finally, the schools will

get campuswide paint jobs.

Ensign will go out for bid in early June and is expected to begin

construction in early summer, while Costa Mesa High School, the first

high school and the most complex of the level-one sites, is expected

to go out for bids by summer’s end.

Other sites within the district -- the level-two, -three and -four

schools -- will begin construction after work at the level-one

schools is completed.

“We’re really looking forward to it, even though it’s an

inconvenience,” Hofer said. “When we’re done, we’ll have a whole new

remodeled place. It really is worth it if you can just get through

it.”

* CHRISTINE CARRILLO covers education and may be reached at (949)

574-4268 or by e-mail at christine.carrillo@latimes.com.