Costly development: VUSD considers impact of ruling on planned campus

By: STACY BRANDT - Staff Writer | Saturday, September 30, 2006 10:47 PM PDT ∞

VISTA ---- A judge's recent ruling ordering the Vista Unified School District to address traffic and safety concerns near a proposed 66-acre high school campus in eastern Oceanside means that costs for the controversial project could grow by more than $1 million, and possibly much higher.

The district had already agreed that key improvements recommended by the California Department of Transportation were needed at the intersection of Highway 76 and Melrose Drive to accommodate the planned campus, but had argued that other agencies should be required to make them.

The Sept. 22 ruling by Superior Court Judge Lisa Guy-Schall means that the district is responsible for the work, which could include adding right- and left-turn lanes, as well as center medians or a pricey pedestrian overpass across the busy highway.

District officials downplayed the setback last week, saying it would not affect plans for construction of the campus, expected to begin next month.

"That's still going to go forward as planned," said Karl Bradley, director of facilities at Vista Unified. "That's what the board majority has directed me to do, and that's what the public voted for when they passed Proposition O, so those are still my marching orders."

But critics, who have long argued that the project is too expensive and would cost much more to build than anticipated, said the ruling only confirms what they already knew.

The ruling was the latest twist in a lawsuit originally brought against the district in 2004 by the city of Oceanside, the county of San Diego and nearby property owners.

Another lawsuit, filed in May by a resident who owns a home near the site, accuses the district of not spending bond money as required by Prop. O. That case has not yet gone to trial.

The budget


The district said it will spend $87 million on the magnet school project, including roughly $19 million to buy and develop the land, $47 million for construction costs, $11 million for modular classrooms, $4 million for planning, $2 million for furniture and equipment, and $1.5 million for tests and inspection. Also included in the figure is a $3 million contingency fund.

Money for the project is coming from Prop. O, the $140 million bond measure passed by voters in 2002.

Bradley said the district had expected to pay its "fair share" of the traffic improvements to Melrose and Highway 76, but that Oceanside and Caltrans would be responsible for designing the work and shouldering most of the costs since they control those roads.

The other agencies ---- and ultimately the judge ---- disagreed. Now, the district will have to plan the road improvements and apply for permits from the controlling agencies.

"It's not enough just to say that you're going to pay your fair share," said Oceanside City Attorney John Mullen. "There has to be a plan in place."

Bradley said the district has not set aside any money to pay for the road improvements, so it would likely have to tap the project's $3 million contingency fund.

The district may also be eligible for federal grant money to pay for some of the improvements, he said.

"We will look at all avenues to increase our budget rather than decrease our contingency," Bradley said. "There are other funds available besides state matching funds and our Prop. O funds."

District officials are also hoping that Hillcrest Homes, which is developing a housing tract across Melrose Drive from the campus, will incorporate some of the requirements into work that they're already planning to do near the intersection.

Critics of the project have repeatedly complained about the increasing cost of the project, which has swelled from an original $52 million that the district first suggested in 2002, and said the project is destined to come in overbudget.

"They knew that these issues were out there, but they're irresponsible with taxpayer money," Trustee Jim Gibson said of the school board majority that has supported the project. "They're trying for the biggest so that they can have a legacy."

Gibson and Trustee Stephen Guffanti have frequently spoken out against the campus, saying it is too expense, and the magnet schools should be located on a smaller, more centrally located site.

The Melrose Drive campus is on the northern edge of Vista Unified and part of the site was originally within the boundaries of the Fallbrook Union High School District and Bonsall Union Elementary School District.

The improvements


The pedestrian overpass and extra lanes now on the table were first suggested by Caltrans in 2004 after Vista Unified sent the agency a copy of plans for the campus.

The state agency cannot require that the district make the changes, it can only offer recommendations, said Mark Phelan, Caltrans project manager for the highway.

"That's the extent of our authority, is to recommend," he said.

In light of the judge's ruling, however, the district must develop the plan, then apply for permits before it can hire a contractor to do any work on the state route. This will insure that any changes the district may make will comply with state standards and fit in with the agency's overall plan for the highway, Phelan said.

Phelan said he doesn't expect Caltrans to pay for any improvements the district makes to the highway.

"If a developer adds impacts to the highway, we ask them to mitigate for those new impacts," he said.

It could take as long as a year to design an overpass and roughly six to nine months to construct it, Phelan said.

"It's a bridge, and it takes time and effort," he said.

The pedestrian overpass could cost the district more than $1 million, Bradley said, though he was uncertain how much adding turn lanes at the intersection could cost.

The lawsuit


Bradley said he expects the district to begin having progress meetings with city, county and Caltrans officials as plans are drawn up, in order to assure that the improvements will address the agencies' concerns.

If the agencies don't approve the district's plans, Vista Unified could still move forward with its project without making the improvements by declaring to the court that the work would not be feasible, district officials said.

If the city and county accept the district's plans for easing the impacts, they could go back to the trial court and agree to end the lawsuit.

The lawsuit was originally filed in 2004 by the city of Oceanside, San Diego County and nearby property owners, who challenged a report that the district filed about the impact the campus would have on the surrounding area.

"It really dramatically failed to assess the impacts of this project," Oceanside City Attorney Mullen said. "This is going to be a project that is going to have a lot of impacts on the surrounding community."

Judge Guy-Schall dismissed the lawsuit in October 2005, but the decision was appealed. In April, a state appeals court ruled that the lawsuit must go back to the trial court to address traffic and safety concerns, prompting the judge's Sept. 22 ruling.

Contact staff writer Stacy Brandt at (760) 631-6622 or sbrandt@nctimes.com.

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