First Report From the Meeting of the CCC

On January 7, 2009, members of the California Coastal Commission, meeting in Oceanside, California voted 8-3 to approve the South Region High School No. 15 Project to be built on the Upper Reservation of Fort MacArthur.

Mr. Rod Hamilton and TWO lawyers representing L.A.U.S.D. attended the meeting.

When I learn the names of the other L.A.U.S.D. representatives that made the journey south to attend the meeting, I will publish those names, too.

The next meeting of the California Coastal Commission will be on February 4-6 in Huntington Beach, California.

Just a bit of trivia: Huntington Beach is CLOSER to the offices of the Los Angeles Unified School District than where today's meeting was held in Oceanside, California.

The next meeting is LESS than one month from today.

Had L.A.U.S.D. requested a continuance of LESS than one-month's time to deal with the Project, by the California Coastal Commission, I highly doubt that there would be the expenditures created by L.A.U.S.D. representatives attending today's meeting than there would be by those same folks attending a meeting much, much closer to the District's offices.

Just about every day now, we are reading and hearing that L.A.U.S.D. has incredible financial woes and is in desperate need to save as much money as possible.

When L.A.U.S.D. feels it is so important that the issue concerning the new campus cannot wait LESS THAN one more month, I should also imagine that they don't really care about their financial straights OR they simply do not 'GET' that they can be shown to be so wasteful with OUR money.

I expected the California Coastal Commission would approve the Project, but I was glad to see that there were opposition votes cast.

L.A.U.S.D. was willing to change their Board of Education plans for the Project so it would find favor with the majority of Commission.

In fact, now that the wind turbines have been removed from the Project, it now conforms to one of the four Alternatives to the Proposed Project, but that Alternative was not approved by the Board of Education, the Preferred Project (with the wind turbines) was approved.

L.A.U.S.D. altered the approved plans without another vote by the Board of Education.

What make anyone trust or believe that L.A.U.S.D. won't make further alterations to their plans for the campus.

Gone should be the consideration that there would only be "810" students attending the new campus, especially since it has been shown that classroom student counts for non-physical education classes have approximately 40 students each.

Gone should be all the notions that Alma Street would NOT be the primary route for students, faculty, staff, and others going to and from the campus.

Gone should also be the promise that L.A.U.S.D. would actually provide funds for a new swimming pool for both school and community use.

If L.A.U.S.D. was willing to cave on their plans documented to support approval of the Project by the Board of Education, what could make anyone believe that since they caved for the California Coastal Commission, they won't cave for others and themselves?

Trust has been demonstrated to be something the Facilities Division and others within L.A.U.S.D. lacks because of their overwhelming desire to do exactly what THEY want to do, no matter what members of the public and taxpayers are told.

What else will L.A.U.S.D. change in the Board of Education approved plans for the new campus?

We will see, we will report, and we will continue to provide comments and facts to support issues of importance.