Many expected the CUSD board to vote Thursday to build the new middle school at the current Cunha Intermediate School site after a report indicated that it would be the most cost-effective alternative.
School board members cited cost as the main factor in the delay.
 Facing the camera and the music, Cabrillo Unified School District board members Charles Gardner, left, and Roy Salume got an earful after failing to vote for a new school site Thursday. |
Other sites include two within the Wavecrest development project, and one adjacent to Half Moon Bay High School commonly known as Podesta. Costs for building at the Wavecrest and Podesta sites are estimated to be about $60 million.
Currently the CUSD board has about $26.5 million in reserve to build the new middle school. The money comes from a bond approved by voters nearly a decade ago.
During their discussion, board members agreed in principle that the Cunha site was likely the only affordable, and therefore the only feasible, alternative.
"To me it's very clear," said John Moseley, CUSD board member. "We have less time and a lot less money ... I frankly don't think we have too many options."
CUSD Board President Dwight Wilson echoed that opinion.
"We have a real opportunity right now," he said. "The reality is that we need to build this school now."
Yet despite heated public protest from the audience, some board members held firm to their contention that voting on a site should wait until funding and property acquisition questions are answered.
"I think we need more information," said board member Charles Gardner. "There's only so much money in the till. We've got to get it within budget."
Board member Roy Salume expressed support for building at Cunha, but insisted that the school board try to acquire four parcels of land adjacent to the intermediate school first. That land could provide more building options for the new middle school.
"This is a key component to making this site work," said Salume. "I don't want to say it's a show stopper but this to me is absolutely key."
Board member Jolanda Schreurs voiced the strongest opposition to a vote.
In a prepared written statement, Schreurs asked that the board take more time to consider its options.
"We are rushing headlong, willy-nilly into a proposal that has had zero discussion," she stated. "Granted we now have a better set of numbers from an unbiased professional team ... And as a result, there is a great deal more clarity about the options and timelines. However, we are missing a great deal of clarity on a number of other vital facts."
During her statement, Schreurs argued that the Cunha campus was crowded with inadequate facilities.
In light of the financial disparity, Schreurs questioned the quality of any new middle school if it were to be built on the Cunha site.
"Does this mean that we are going to have fewer than the 39 classrooms that were planned? Does this mean that we are going to have to value-engineer our way to a lesser school?" asked Schreurs.
Some in the audience agreed.
"It seems to me these issues need to be resolved before you make a decision," said Jim Larimer, a Coastside County Water District director.
But while Schreurs and other board members expressed hesitation about voting, Wilson and Moseley said that the board should take immediate action and figure out the details as the project moves forward.
"We have to make it work, said Wilson. "If we don't set a course today, we're not going to go anywhere.
"We have to put ourselves on a clock," he said.
Moseley put it this way: "We got the report. Where else are we going to go?"
The decision to postpone the decision was met with strong opposition from the audience, which overwhelmingly argued that postponing the vote would only prolong the divisive issue and ultimately cost the district more money.
"I don't know what you're going to do in a month," said Half Moon Bay Mayor Jim Grady. "I think you're going to disappoint a lot of people if you put it off."
Disappointment seemed to be only one of the emotions as members of the audience spoke during public comment.
"We've waited eight years," said Leonard Woren. "I urge you to move forward with this as quickly as possible. The longer you wait, the worse the decision is going to be."
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