Peer into Pier School’s future
Dear ER:
Hermosa Beach owns an under-utilized, former middle school comprising of 14 classrooms while students languish in over-crowded Valley and View schools. The 4.7 acre Community Center (formerly Pier Avenue School) is a tremendous community asset that should be used for the greatest good. Unfortunately, neither the City of Hermosa Beach nor the Hermosa Beach City School District are impartial purveyors of information regarding Pier’s use as a district school. The City has an obvious conflict of interest in not wanting to give up control of the Community Center. District administration has a conflict of interest in that it would rather have taxpayers pay millions to build a brand new, 500 student campus at North School. It is in both their interest to convince the community that the only option is to rebuild North School. Just because the district and the city rattle off official sounding documents as reasons why the Community Center can’t be used as a school, doesn’t mean that those documents actually contain information that would prohibit its use. The city and the district are counting on the fact that community members won’t actually take the time to read the documents and will simply accept their smokescreen. Please investigate the actual documents yourself at RestoreHermosaSchools.com. All district facility options need to be evaluated in an open public process, including that of rebuilding North School and the use of the Community Center.
Miyo Prassas
Hermosa Beach
Step up or shut up
Dear ER:
The negative campaign Miyo Prassas continues to wage against Hermosa Beach schools has reached comical levels to those of us who take time to understand issues. It only takes a quick Internet search to see the extent school board-established committees went through to explore a variety of areas including budget, cost cutting, administrative restructuring, merging with other Districts, and, yes, facility needs and options. Having served on the board for four years, I can say firsthand that countless volunteers logged thousands of hours and left no rock unturned in the quest to solve a variety of issues that helped the district weather one of the most challenging economic periods in several generations. I believe the efforts were a success and Prassas’ ongoing rock throwing is an insult to their efforts.
I agree that some solutions seem logical on the surface, but must be dismissed because they are either against the education code, state law, or just not practical. Is Prassas implying our elected officials should break the law by pursuing illegal paths? It is also hard to follow the twisted logic that the District should utilize property it does not own and is not for sale rather than use owned property that is currently operating as a school site. I can only conclude it is not that there is insufficient data available, but simply an inability to comprehend the data.Prassas seems to have all the answers and I encourage her to run for school board next November. She can then be held accountable publicly for her options, which are illegal, illogical, or plain silly. I suspect she will choose to hide behind her never-ending letter writing campaign and negativity, as it is easier than being held accountable.
Jack Burns
Former Hermosa Beach School District Board Member
Hermosa Beach
Oilnomics
Dear ER:
John Szot offers a simplistic way of looking at the cost to Hermosa Beach property owners if they reject E&B’s proposed 34-well oil and gas drilling and pipeline project (ER letters, 16, 2014). But in his on-going zeal for all things oil, he fails to acknowledge the true cost to Hermosa Beach property owners if the allow the oil and gas drilling project.
Maps and charts in the Final EIR depict health and safety impacts radiating from the drill site at 6th and Valley Dr. for up to 1,000 feet. (Set aside the fact that the City of Dallas, TX, home of fictional oil baron JR Ewing, recently adopted a 1,500 foot setback from homes, schools and churches for all oil and gas drilling projects.)
I asked a Realtor how many homes in Hermosa Beach were within a 1,000 foot radius of the drill site. Using title insurance, she informed me that just under 1,000 residences fall within 1,056 feet, or one fifth of a mile of the proposed site. Zillow.com says the median price of a home currently listed in Hermosa Beach is $1.3M. Multiplying $1.3M X 1,000 you come up with a total value of $1.3B for the properties in question. According to the consultants who developed the Cost Benefit Analysis report, property values in the proximate area of the drill site may be reduced by as much as 10 percent if the oil and gas drilling project becomes a reality. I’m sure that Szot, who is an engineer, can do the math in his head. Hermosa Beach property owners stand to lose a ton of money if this project goes forward. That’s the real cost. Not only will the homeowners pay that cost, the Realtor who sells a piece of property will see his or her income reduced. So too will the Broker and the lending institutions and ultimately over time, the city will lose in the form of reduced property tax revenues. Of course, losses won’t be confined to 1,056 feet. And all bets are off with even a minor spill. explosion or fire.
Even if the project is approved, Hermosa Beach will owe the oil company $3.5M. That’s on top of the tremendous loss in property values. The fact is the city can’t afford an oil drilling project.
If we’re going to look at the costs associated with this unhealthy and unsafe project let’s look at all of the costs and then let’s reject this project on March 3, 2015.
George Schmeltzer
Hermosa Beach
Schooled in distrust
Dear ER:
I do not support the current bond measure because the School District has
failed to demonstrate that it can or will manage its resources in a prudent
and responsible manner.
In 1954, voters approved a bond to address outdated classrooms and
overcrowded schools. The funds were used to provide five elementary
campuses and a junior high school. When enrollment decreased, the
School District sold three properties for less than market value and
“decommissioned” one.
In 2002, voters approved Measure J believing the money would be used to
upgrade the school sites and provide additional classrooms. The funds
were used primarily to build a gym with two annexed classrooms. Many of
the slated improvements were left undone due to lack of funding.
We are now being asked to approve a $54 million bond (the maximum
allowable amount) to address “the needs of the local student population”
and “issues of overcrowding.” While the District commissioned the
preparation of a “Long Range Facilities Master Plan” suggesting various
options, no specific plan has been adopted to date. Moreover, the District
has failed to prioritize how the funds will be used, provide an itemized
budget for the recommended repairs and upgrades, or identify how each
school site (including North School) will be utilized.
It is indisputable that additional classrooms and campus space are needed
to accommodate current enrollment. However, history has shown that our
student population will continue to fluctuate. Consequently, before
approving funds to “improve the quality of educational facilities,” I want
some assurance that the District has taken hindsight into account when
planning for our community’s future.
Lael Stabler
Hermosa Beach
Full disclosure
Dear ER:
In my view, all the Hermosa Beach oil ballot measure needs to say is the following (“Hermosa council wrestles over 75-word oil-drilling ballot statement,” ER Oct. 16, 2014):
Should Hermosa Beach voters support E&B oil, commercial Realtor Jim Sullivan, and the rest of that ilk, permit E&B oil to drill 30 oil-extraction wells and four high-pressure waste-water injection wells under Hermosa Beach’s homes, schools, businesses, parks, beach and surf, and do that from the city’s present maintenance yard for 34 years? Are you that thoughtless? [YES or NO]
Howard Longacre
Hermosa Beach
Find the leader
Dear ER:
Since the newly Hermosa Beach city council members began their tenure, has a council meeting ended before midnight? Last week’s meeting went to 1 a.m., arguing over language that the city attorney had worked on for at least five months. The length of these meetings is an indicator of the dysfunction of the entire Council. Hermosa needs leaders.
Rebecca Votto
Hermosa Beach
